China buys three in ten of the world's beef imports
Beef and veal imports by country, thousand tonnes carcass weight, 2025 vs 2022.
China imported 3.66 Mt of the world's 11.95 Mt of beef imports in 2025.
China bought more beef abroad than the next two importers combined (3.14 Mt).
US imports jumped from 1.54 Mt in 2022 to 2.44 Mt in 2025, the fastest rise among big buyers.
the numbers
| Imports (kt) | 2022 (grey bar) (kt) | Share of world (%) | 2022 (grey bar) (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 3,657 | 3,501 | 30.6 | 34.2 |
| United States | 2,444 | 1,538 | 20.5 | 15.0 |
| Japan | 695 | 777 | 5.8 | 7.6 |
| South Korea | 586 | 595 | 4.9 | 5.8 |
| European Union | 462 | 372 | 3.9 | 3.6 |
| United Kingdom | 396 | 400 | 3.3 | 3.9 |
| Chile | 356 | 349 | 3.0 | 3.4 |
| Russia | 330 | 295 | 2.8 | 2.9 |
| Canada | 314 | 214 | 2.6 | 2.1 |
| Philippines | 282 | 256 | 2.4 | 2.5 |
| Egypt | 265 | 270 | 2.2 | 2.6 |
source notes & method
Carcass weight equivalent. Shares are progrss calculations from USDA's world import total (11,945 kt in 2025; 10,227 kt in 2022). USDA counts China excluding Hong Kong; EU external trade only. USDA forecasts China at 3.60 Mt in 2026 and notes a new Chinese tariff-rate quota on beef imports. Saudi Arabia is not listed separately by USDA.
Published 3 Nov 2026
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