Nebraska ag exports shattered records in 2021

Farmers harvest corn near Merna in 2021. Thanks in part to a huge increase in corn exports that year, Nebraska set an all-time record with $9.2 billion worth of agricultural exports.

Nebraska agricultural exports shattered records in 2021, according to a report released earlier this month by the Nebraska Farm Bureau.

The state exported $9.2 billion worth of agricultural commodities that year, more than $2 billion more than in 2020, the report said.

It was the first time Nebraska ag exports have topped $9 billion and only the fourth time they've ever topped $7 million, Austin Harthoorn, a Nebraska Farm Bureau economist, said in a news release.

The state likely benefited from an overall strong export market in 2021. The U.S. as a whole exported a record $177 billion worth of ag products that year. The U.S. broke that record again last year, with $196 billion in exports.

Corn was the top Nebraska export, accounting for $2.34 billion of the total, a 98% increase over 2020 and by far the highest export amount ever reported.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said U.S. corn was competitive in global markets in 2021 and was supported by tight supplies in competing export countries.

Kelly Brunkhorst, executive director of the Nebraska Corn Board, said there were two factors that worked in Nebraska's favor to boost the export value of corn in 2021.

"First, the price of corn moved higher and secondly, there was great demand from both China and Mexico," Brunkhorst said. "Together those factor into the higher value of Nebraska corn exports."

Soybeans, which had been the top export from the state the past two years, came in second at $1.91 billion, virtually the same amount as in 2020.

Beef exports also climbed to their highest amount ever reported, $1.64 billion, to rank third overall. Harthoorn said much of the growth was driven by increased purchases by South Korea and Japan, up 39% and 22% respectively.

Pork exports, too, hit their highest level ever, at $307.6 million.

The report also listed the number of exports generated by each Nebraska County.

Platte County led the way with $229.6 million in exports in 2021, followed by Custer and Cuming counties at around $220 million each. No southeast Nebraska counties cracked the top 10, but York, Saunders and Gage counties ranked 11-13.

Lancaster County ranked 32nd with about $104 million in exports.

Nebraska's export total ranked it fifth overall in the U.S., but it was the top export state for beef and third highest for corn.

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The U.S. trade deficit neared $1 trillion in 2022, hitting a record high.

At the same time, total exports grew faster than imports, and select U.S. exports are experiencing particularly high surges. The war in Ukraine led many European countries to import U.S. oil as they largely stopped importing from Russia. U.S. farm exports surpassed records as values grew across main markets, including China, Mexico, Canada, Japan, and the European Union.

Nationwide, the largest 2022 exports were fuel, oil, and byproducts; nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances; electronics; vehicles; and aircraft, spacecraft, and aerospace parts. But each state specializes in its own combination of commodities that contribute to the national export catalog.

Stacker compiled a list of the 30 largest exports from Nebraska in 2022 using trade data from the Census Bureau. Stacker considered all 98 export categories included in the global harmonized system in its rankings. Read on to see the top exports in your state.

- Total value of 2022 exports: $24.52 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $24.85 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $25.39 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $31.85 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $36.14 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $40.91 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $48.5 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $53.81 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $54.38 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $61.23 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $65.74 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $69.25 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $69.48 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $80.27 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $81.43 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $88.86 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $89.89 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $102.47 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $143.61 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $184.19 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $198.03 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $294.6 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $397.83 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $481.06 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $527.14 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $614.08 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $723.15 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $732.86 million

- Total value of 2022 exports: $1.25 billion

- Total value of 2022 exports: $2.1 billion

Reach the writer at 402-473-2647 or [email protected].

On Twitter @LincolnBizBuzz.

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Business reporter

Matt Olberding is a Lincoln native and University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduate who has been covering business for the Journal Star since 2005.

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