On March 13, Ecuador became the ninth country to sign an Agreement on Reciprocal Trade with the United States. The agreement will take some time to implement, but once in place it will remove both tariff and non-tariff barriers for U.S. beef and pork exports, according to U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Vice President for Economic Analysis Erin Borror.
Tariffs of 20% on beef and 45% on pork are mostly phased out, although there are exceptions on pork, including the 30% tariff on processed pork products which will remain in place. The agreement also calls for recognition of all USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) inspected facilities as eligible for export to Ecuador, removing the need for individual facility approvals.
To gauge potential impact of the agreement on U.S. beef and pork exports to Ecuador, Borror looks to Guatemala, which has a similar population and per capita GDP. Guatemala entered a free trade agreement with the U.S. in 2006 (CAFTA-DR). Since implementation, U.S. beef exports to Guatemala have grown from less than $3 million to $105 million and pork from $10 million to $148 million.
In 2025, the U.S. exported virtually no pork to Ecuador and only $3 million in beef.
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