Fruit Trade

Since the mid-1990s, the United States has imported more fruit per year than it has exported. The total value of fresh, frozen, dried, processed fruit and fruit juice imported in 2010 was $10.4 billion, while fruit exports totaled $6.4 billion. Thirty percent of fresh fruit consumed in the United States—excluding bananas, the largest fruit import by volume—is now imported. The biggest fruit import into the United States by monetary value per year is grapes, followed by avocados and pineapples.

The United States exports more apples, by both value and volume, than any other fruit. Orange juice concentrate is the second most valuable fruit export, followed by fresh oranges, grapes, and peaches. While U.S. fruit exports have doubled since 1990, imports have tripled. Increased imports of tropical fruits partially account for this, as does year-round availability of fruit once difficult to find: kiwis from New Zealand, mangoes from Mexico, and dragonfruit from Vietnam.