The Three Musketeers Are Feeding the World
The Three Musketeers — America, Brazil, and Argentina — already feed the world.
Together with the rest of the Western Hemisphere, they must now leverage that power to protect the region's democracies from China's coercion.
These three nations dominate the crops and meat that sustain billions of people.
In 2024, these three countries accounted for approximately 80% of global soybean production. In 2023, these countries produced almost 85% of soymeal exports.
In 2024, the United States produced 31% of the world’s corn, which is more than any country in the world. In 2023, these three countries alone were responsible for 62.3% of the world's corn exports.
In 2025, these three countries are expected to produce over 40% of the world's beef exports. In poultry, the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia together produced approximately 43% of the world’s poultry in 2024.
In 2024, China produced 15% of the world’s poultry, 20% of the world's beef, and 49% of the world’s pork production.
China produced 57 million metric tons of pork in 2024 and yet it still could not satisfy domestic demand. To feed its livestock, China must import more than 100 million metric tons of soybeans every year, which represents roughly 60% of all traded soybeans in the world.
This is why the Americas are the backbone of global protein supply.
Modern agriculture depends on animal feed.
Soybean meal and corn are the essential ingredients that make large scale livestock production possible. Without them, there is no affordable pork, chicken, or beef.
Most of those soybeans come from Brazil and the United States.
In 2024, China also imported about 2.87 million metric tons of beef, 1.07 million metric tons of pork, and 495,000 metric tons of poultry.
The Western Hemisphere clearly anchors global food security in both feed and finished meat. The Americas are also responsible for a large share of world fruit exports.
In 2024, Peru led the world in grape exports while Chile exported the most cherries in 2021. In 2023, Mexico and Peru alone produced more than half of the world’s exports in avocados.
In 2023, Peru and Chile produced 39 percent of blueberries exported. In 2023, Peru, Mexico, and the United States produced almost 70 percent of asparagus exports.
Latin America supplies more than half of the world's coffee and Brazil alone provides about 40 percent of sugar exports.
In contrast, China has been a net importer of food since 2005 and each year that dependence grows. China imported $237 billion dollars in agricultural products in 2024, which is more than twice what it exported.
China has less than 10% of the world's arable land, but nearly 20% of its population. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, northern China has half the country’s population, two thirds of the farmland, but only one-fifth of the water.
China does not have enough land or water to produce the feed required for its livestock.
The growth in per capita income among the Chinese increases the demand for meat and that means even greater reliance on imports.
Geography has ensured that China's food security is tied to the Western Hemisphere.
Each of the major American food producers contributes a necessary strength.
With these democracies fully aligned, this alliance would represent the majority of global protein export capacity.
The free world must recruit its friends, build common reserves, and coordinate food policy so that no democracy is left alone if China applies pressure.
In "The Three Musketeers," Alexandre Dumas describes how the King's musketeers protected France by pledging to defend one another and their nation.
Their motto was }"All for one and one for all."
Today, the United States, Brazil, and Argentina are the Three Musketeers of global food security. But in Dumas's story the Musketeers became truly powerful only when a fourth joined them.
In our world every willing democracy can be their own D'Artagnan.
For example, Canada is the largest producer and exporter of potash, which is a key ingredient in fertilizer.
When these partners join with America, Brazil, and Argentina, their strength multiplies.
This unity already has a legal foundation.
The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, known as the Rio Pact, declares that an attack on one nation in the hemisphere is an attack on all.
Today's threats may be economic rather than military, but the principle is the same.
When any democracy in the Americas is pressured by Beijing, no democracy should stand alone.
This is peaceful deterrence.
It does not seek to use food as a weapon but makes clear that prosperity requires mutual respect.
Robert Zapesochny is a researcher and writer. His work focuses on foreign affairs, national security, and presidential history. He's been published in numerous outlets, including The American Spectator, The Washington Times, and The American Conservative. When he's not writing, Robert works for a medical research company in New York. Read Robert Zapesochny's Reports — More Here.
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