USA09 July, 20262 min read
USDA Cuts Late-June Beef Export Sales Reported Volume By 90% After Incorrect Data
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USDA reduced late-June beef export sales by 90%. Revision tied to data-quality concerns and Trump-era staffing cuts.
USDA cuts beef sales
The U.S. Department of Agriculture dramatically lowered its reported beef export sales for late June, saying exporters in late June sold a net 12,064 metric tons of U.S. beef to foreign buyers, 90% lower than the volume it originally reported a week earlier.
The revision followed USDA’s receipt of incorrect beef export sales data, which it said it had published in a weekly report on July 2.
Reuters reported that traders had largely dismissed USDA’s initial report as inaccurate, and that trust in USDA reports has suffered among traders, analysts and farmers after staffing losses and after the agency significantly underestimated corn acres last year.
The South China Morning Post likewise said the original report was widely dismissed as inaccurate, and tied the doubts to concerns over the agency’s big staff cuts under the Trump administration.
Doubts over data quality
Reuters said USDA’s data showed 2026 sales reached a high of 126,062 metric tons in the week that ended on June 25, up nearly 500% from a week earlier, before the agency revised the figures downward.
The Reuters story also described how USDA data released on July 2 included record sales of 38,434 metric tons to Chile and 32,274 metric tons to Italy, which USDA later revised to 367 metric tons to Chile and 350 metric tons to Italy.
Austin Schroeder, a commodity analyst at Brugler Marketing & Management, said, "Should the USDA have caught it? Probably," and added, "They may have just overlooked it."
USDA said on July 2 that multiple sales had been reported late and that it had confirmed the accuracy of data with an exporter, using an abbreviation for metric tons, before later saying on Thursday that the exports had been "reported in error".
Broader trade and market context
Reuters linked the beef-sales revision to wider questions about USDA’s data handling, noting that it delayed a quarterly agricultural trade report and excluded findings that pointed to tariffs as a reason for a forecast increase in the agricultural trade deficit. The Reuters account also said U.S. beef prices have set records this year because of tight cattle supplies and strong demand for hamburgers and steaks from domestic consumers, while exports have declined since 2022 because of increased prices and reduced production.
In a separate USDA-focused overview of global beef trade, Opportimes said the United States had 8,582 million dollars in beef exports in 2023, with a 15.7% year-on-year decrease, and that the USDA projected global beef exports would rise slightly in 2024 to 12.3 million tonnes. That same Opportimes piece said the strong demand for imports into the United States would support an increase in Australia’s exports, while reductions in U.S. exports to major East Asian markets would offset parts of the rise.