USHSLA says 2017 hide export result is “a major success”
14/02/2018
On announcing the 2017 result, the US Hide, Skin and Leather Association (USHSLA) confirmed that more than 90% of US hides and skins now go for export; it said the US is one of the top raw materials supplier to the global leather industry.
“The hides and skins industry is a major success story for US agriculture and exports,” said USHSLA president, Stephen Sothmann. “The 2017 export figures demonstrate the industry continues to thrive, even in the face of significant global political and economic headwinds.”
According to data from the US Department of Agriculture, exports of wet salted cattle hides brought in nearly $1.5 billion in value, a 6% increase compared to 2016. However, the value of exports of wet blue cattle hides fell by 7% to reach $565.6 million in value.
China was the largest buyer of salted cattle hides, with imports valued at more than $871 million, while Italy was the single largest destination for wet blue cattle hides, with imports valued at more than $216 million in 2017. Other large export markets included South Korea, Mexico, Taiwan and Vietnam.
In terms of volume, the total number of wet-salted hides exported by the US last year was 24.8 million, which represents an increase year on year of 15.3%. For wet blue, the total volume exported in 2017 was 5.9 million, a fall of 10.6%. US cattle slaughter increased in volume by 5% year on year.
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