Browse Data and Analysis

The Caribbean Basin region continues to experience growth, driven primarily by the steady rise in tourism, which in turn impacts consumer demand.

Uzbekistan is one of Central Asia’s fastest-growing consumer markets, powered by strong GDP growth (6.5 percent in 2024; 5.9 percent forecast in 2025) and a population rising by 1 million annually. Urbanization, a young middle class, and shifting consumer habits are driving rapid demand for modern retail, packaged foods, and convenience formats.

Guatemala’s imports of consumer-oriented products continue to grow, reaching $886 million in 2024, a 14 percent increase that surpassed imports of bulk and intermediate products by nearly 50 percent.

The 2024 U.S. Agricultural Export Yearbook provides a statistical summary of U.S. agricultural commodity exports to the world during the 2024 calendar year.

Guatemala’s coffee production areas remain stable, with gradual increases in output as ongoing renovation efforts begin to show results.

Uzbekistan’s cotton sector is at a crossroads. While opportunities for high-value-added products like textiles and ready-to-wear apparel are expanding, the industry faces financial constraints, shrinking farmland, and water shortages.

In MY 2023/24, Guatemala ranked as the world’s second most efficient sugarcane producer and fourth in overall sugar production efficiency. For MY 2025/26, production is forecast to remain steady, with planted and harvested areas unchanged from the previous two years, and growth expected in MY 2026/27.

Rice production in Guatemala is slowly declining due to limited access to improved seed varieties and an insufficient domestic supply of locally developed seeds.

This report highlights the food processing industry, its drivers, key players, and market landscape in the Caribbean Basin. The region relies heavily on imports, and the United States is the largest supplier of food ingredients.

The food and beverage processing industry in Guatemala includes around 2,200 companies and plays a crucial role in the country's economy, contributing to employment, exports, and domestic food security.

Uzbekistan plans to increase its textile exports from $3 billion to $7 billion by 2028, which depends on a stable supply of raw cotton. However, this goal faces challenges as cotton production is under pressure due to various factors.

In 2023, Guatemala ranked as the 16th largest U.S. agricultural export market, despite a nine percent decline in total exports, largely driven by reduced imports of bulk commodities. U.S. agricultural exports to Guatemala reached $1.6 billion. As the...