Vermont’s Agriculture Exports to China Surge 80%, Defying US Trade Slump

By Lukas Dunford

U.S.-China trade relations have been roiled this year by a tariff fight, and agriculture is one of the sectors of the economy that was thrown into disarray.

But revenue from agricultural exports to China has boomed this year in Vermont. In the first eight months of 2025, the value of Vermont’s exports have increased by 78.3% compared with the same time frame in 2024, according to a report from Farm Flavor, an agriculture company based in Franklin, Tenn.

But this doesn’t mean Green Mountain maple syrup and CSA shares are be shipped to Beijing.

Almost all of the $2.7 million increase came from dairy products, more specifically whey, according to Farm Flavor content director Hannah Hill. Whey is a byproduct of cheese used for protein powder, baby formula, as a food-additive and in animal feed.

And Vermont is “on track to break all records for whey exports to China of anything in the last five years,” said Brendan Wilson, the CEO of Food Export Northeast, a Chicago-based nonprofit trade association.

On average, agricultural exports to China from the United States have fallen 54% compared to last year, according to Farm Flavor’s report.

Vermont is bucking that trend.

The largest Vermont exporter of whey to China is Agri-Mark, the largest dairy co-op in Vermont and owner of Cabot Cheese, said Scott Waterman, a spokesman for the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets.