Food exports (% of merchandise exports) in United States
United States: Food exports (% of merchandise exports) was 9.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Food exports in United States, 1962–2025
Source: Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division. Measured in % of merchandise exports.
Analysis
In 2025, food exports in United States stood at 9.0%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.0% on the previous year and down 9.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, food exports in United States peaked at 23.6% in 1973 and was at its lowest, 7.2%, in 2006.
United States ranks 136th of 196 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Food exports (% of merchandise exports) in United States, year by year
| Year | % of merchandise exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | 20.7% | — |
| 1963 | 21.4% | +3.3% |
| 1964 | 21.4% | +0.1% |
| 1965 | 21.1% | -1.5% |
| 1966 | 21.3% | +0.9% |
| 1967 | 18.9% | -11.3% |
| 1968 | 16.9% | -10.5% |
| 1969 | 15.0% | -11.1% |
| 1970 | 16.0% | +6.5% |
| 1971 | 16.3% | +1.8% |
| 1972 | 17.8% | +9.5% |
| 1973 | 23.6% | +32.4% |
| 1974 | 21.1% | -10.7% |
| 1975 | 19.7% | -6.7% |
| 1976 | 19.2% | -2.3% |
| 1977 | 18.7% | -2.6% |
| 1978 | 20.0% | +6.7% |
| 1979 | 18.9% | -5.5% |
| 1980 | 18.2% | -3.3% |
| 1981 | 18.5% | +1.3% |
| 1982 | 17.1% | -7.4% |
| 1983 | 17.8% | +4.1% |
| 1984 | 16.8% | -5.6% |
| 1985 | 13.5% | -19.8% |
| 1986 | 12.6% | -6.6% |
| 1987 | 11.7% | -7.4% |
| 1989 | 11.7% | +0.5% |
| 1990 | 11.1% | -5.4% |
| 1991 | 10.4% | -5.9% |
| 1992 | 10.9% | +4.2% |
| 1993 | 10.4% | -3.9% |
| 1994 | 10.1% | -2.9% |
| 1995 | 10.5% | +3.8% |
| 1996 | 10.7% | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 9.0% | -15.6% |
| 1998 | 8.3% | -7.5% |
| 1999 | 7.9% | -5.5% |
| 2000 | 7.3% | -7.2% |
| 2001 | 7.9% | +8.2% |
| 2002 | 8.2% | +3.4% |
| 2003 | 8.7% | +5.9% |
| 2004 | 8.0% | -8.1% |
| 2005 | 7.5% | -6.1% |
| 2006 | 7.2% | -3.7% |
| 2007 | 8.1% | +13.0% |
| 2008 | 9.4% | +15.3% |
| 2009 | 10.1% | +7.8% |
| 2010 | 9.7% | -4.1% |
| 2011 | 9.8% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 9.9% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 10.0% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 10.3% | +2.9% |
| 2015 | 10.0% | -3.3% |
| 2016 | 10.6% | +6.3% |
| 2017 | 10.1% | -4.7% |
| 2018 | 9.4% | -6.9% |
| 2019 | 9.3% | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 11.5% | +23.2% |
| 2021 | 11.1% | -3.0% |
| 2022 | 10.3% | -7.9% |
| 2023 | 9.5% | -7.0% |
| 2024 | 9.5% | -1.0% |
| 2025 | 9.0% | -5.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 9.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 11.3%, 80% of the median. (71 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 19.6% | 15.0% | 21.4% | 8 |
| 1970s | 19.1% | 16.0% | 23.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.3% | 11.7% | 18.5% | 9 |
| 1990s | 9.9% | 7.9% | 11.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.2% | 7.2% | 10.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.9% | 9.3% | 10.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.1% | 9.0% | 11.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near United States
More private sector data for United States
- Merchandise trade 18.5% (2025)
- Food imports 6.7% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 78.8% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 3.51 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 884.71 billion current US$ (2025)
- Manufactures exports 54.9% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 2.19 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 1.21 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 6,394 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.071 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is food exports in United States?
- Food exports in United States was 9.0% in 2025, according to Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division.
- What is the highest food exports recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 23.6% in 1973.
- What is the lowest food exports recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.2% in 2006.
- How does United States rank for food exports?
- United States ranks 136th out of 196 countries with data for 2025.
- Is food exports rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division, published as part of Food exports (% of merchandise exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Food comprises the commodities in SITC (Rev. 3) sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels). This indicator is expressed as a percentage of merchandise exports which is comprised of goods whose economic ownership is changed between a resident and a non-resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e.