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.

In 2024, U.S. exports of agricultural and related products to Honduras totaled $1.3 billion, representing a 38.2 percent share of the market and a 1.3 percent increase over the previous year.

Honduran coffee production is forecast to reach 5.52 million 60-kilogram bags in marketing year (MY) 2024/25 and rise to 5.80 million bags in MY 2025/26.

Paraguay’s wheat exports inn marketing year (MY) 2025/26 are forecast at 550,000 metric tons (MT), edging up slightly from the previous year, supported by a modest expansion in planted area even as yields may decline marginally.

Paraguay’s soybean production is forecast to rebound to 10.9 million metric tons (MMT) in MY2025/26 on improved weather and modest acreage gains, following weather-driven losses the previous year.

Sugar production and exports in Honduras are expected to increase in MY 2025/26, driven by higher yields, expanded harvest areas, and greater investment.

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 United States is a major trading partner with the Dominican Republic (DR). The DR is the largest economy in the Caribbean and the seventh-largest economy in Latin America. Since the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) went into effect for the DR in 2007, U.S. agricultural exports to the DR have increased from $1 billion in 2007 to $2 billion in 2024.

Sugar production and exports are projected slightly up in marketing year (MY) 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025) because of the increase in productivity yields, harvested area, and additional investments made in the sugar sector and increased exports.

The Caribbean Basin region has a robust and competitive hotel/restaurant/institutional (HRI) sector. Tourism is a major economic driver, accounting for nearly 9 million visitors in 2023, almost 50 percent of which arrived from the United States...

In 2023, the United States held a 29.1 percent share of the consumer-oriented food and beverage market in Honduras, a slight decrease of 1.3 percent from 2022.

Honduras has made no modifications to its existing regulatory framework regarding genetically engineered (GE) crops. As of October 2024, planted area of GE corn in Honduras has increased by 29 percent from the previous year, rising from 52,000 to 67,000 hectares. In 2024, the National Committee on Biotechnology and Biosecurity approved six events.