NPB understands the importance of the Vietnam market for U.S. Pork and will be attending the upcoming USDA Trade Mission in September.
National Pork Board (NPB) will be promoting the U.S. Pork brand and portfolio at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Trade Mission to Vietnam in mid-September. This week-long mission will occur in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. I look forward to participating in this upcoming trade mission alongside Al Wulfekuhle, NPB president and pork producer from Iowa.
Vietnam Market Insights
Vietnam is forecasted to become the world’s 11th–largest consumer market by 2030.1 The country is expected to have 80 million consumers by 2030, up 34% compared to 2024.2 It is also expected to be among Asia’s top five countries posting the fastest growth in their consumer market. This population has preference for pork. It’s the most popular protein in the country, with 66.1 pounds consumed per capita with steady growth over the past five years.3
In addition to anticipated population and consumption growth, Vietnam is currently experiencing active and continued outbreaks of African swine fever (ASF), resulting in tightened domestic supplies and increasing the need for more imported pork products.4 Vietnam’s imports of pork meat and offal were up 44% in the first quarter of this year compared to just one year ago.5
However, the United States is not the lead supplier of imported pork to Vietnam. Rather, we are fifth after Brazil, the European Union, Canada and Russia.6 The United States is the largest trading partner with Vietnam that does not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA).7 Therefore, pork faces a higher tariff rate than our competitors that have an FTA, putting us at a disadvantage.
Producer Perspective for Trade Missions
The value of exports to pork producers in the U.S. cannot be understated. Based on our strategic partnerships and our export strategy, we’re able to maximize and add value to the carcass. There are some cuts or variety meats that U.S. consumers don’t prefer, but they do internationally.
Al Wulfekuhle, current NPB Board of Directors president, has never been to Vietnam and is excited to join me and learn about their culture and consumers. These trade missions are part of our learning process, and we strive to gain a better understanding of what consumers want in countries like Vietnam and then we work to fulfill those needs.
“We’re developing reliable partners that will buy pork from us year after year that we can depend on, and they can depend on us. That’s really what the U.S. pig industry needs: reliable partners with a lot of trust and that’s why we do trade missions,” Al said.
Growth Opportunities in Vietnam
The strategy for the National Pork Board is to differentiate U.S. Pork in key markets compared to competitive products. This trade mission to Vietnam will provide a close look at how we currently compete and what initiatives should be considered in the future to appropriately prioritize and strengthen our presence in this market.
We look forward to sharing more about our trip to Vietnam upon completion of this mission.
Content reshared courtesy of the Pork Checkoff, Des Moines, Iowa
