“Agriculture is key to the Kansas economy, and a record-setting 2011 is great news,” said Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Dale Rodman.  “These numbers show just how important agriculture is to our state.”

The growth in Kansas agricultural exports helped drive overall export growth in Kansas. In 2011, total exports in Kansas increased 17 percent, or by $1.67 billion, to $11.68 billion. Agricultural exports grew 35 percent in 2011 and accounted for 31.8 percent of total Kansas exports.

Additionally, agricultural exports in 2011 were $951 million more than 2010 levels and accounted for 57 percent of the state’s total export growth from 2010.

Exports of red meat were the largest segment of the state’s agricultural exports. Valued at more than $1.01 billion, red meat exports saw a 36.16 percent increase from 2010 levels, which represents 8.73 percent of total Kansas exports. The second largest agricultural export, wheat, accounted for more than $938 million in value and was a 166.98 percent increase from 2010 levels.

Mexico was the largest export market for Kansas agricultural products again in 2011. Mexico accounted for $953 million, or 25.9 percent, of total agricultural exports. Agricultural exports grew the most in 2011 to Nigeria, Kansas’s second largest agricultural export market, with $564 million in value. In 2011, Kansas agricultural products were exported to 105 different countries.

These data were obtained from the USDA’s FAS and are a function of the United States Census Bureau’s Origin of Movement methodology for export valuation. The value of agricultural exports from Kansas that are shipped for export via other states is often underestimated with this methodology and discounts the true value of Kansas agriculture exports. The USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) publishes an alternative estimate for state agricultural exports that estimated the value of Kansas agricultural exports at $4.87 billion, or 178 percent of the FAS and Census estimates. While the estimates may vary, the importance agriculture has to the Kansas economy is significant.