Global Cereal Production

1. Global wheat, maize and rice production, 1970–2024

Maize has become the largest of the three major grain crops. World maize production reached 1,218 million tonnes in 2024, compared with 820 million tonnes of paddy rice and 798 million tonnes of wheat. All three were far above their 1970 levels, but their paths differed: maize accelerated particularly strongly after 2000, while wheat grew more steadily. Together these crops accounted for roughly 91% of FAOSTAT’s 2024 cereals-primary total.

The year points are selected snapshots, not a continuous annual line: intervening harvests can vary sharply with weather, planting decisions and prices. Rice is measured before milling, whereas wheat and maize are recorded as harvested grain, so the lines describe farm output by weight rather than identical quantities of edible food. The continent chart below shows why a worldwide total can conceal different regional patterns. Because the World aggregate includes all primary cereals, its total is higher than the sum of these three lines.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

2. Wheat production in Eastern Europe, Western Europe and Northern America, 1970–2024

Eastern Europe produced 149 million tonnes of wheat in 2024, ahead of Northern America’s 90 million tonnes and Western Europe’s 49 million tonnes under FAOSTAT’s geographical classifications. The regional paths differ considerably: Eastern European output fell between the 1990 and 2000 points before recovering strongly, while Northern America’s series fluctuated around a lower level in recent decades. Western Europe rose over much of the earlier period but recorded a lower 2024 harvest than in 2023.

Read the long comparison with care. Historical regional aggregates pass through the dissolution of the Soviet Union and other changes in country reporting, so the pre-1990 Eastern Europe points are less directly comparable with recent values. “Western Europe” is FAOSTAT’s subregion, not a shorthand for all European countries west of Russia; Northern America is likewise a defined subregion rather than every country on the continent.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

3. Largest cereal-producing countries, 2024

China produced 653 million tonnes of primary cereals in 2024, followed by the United States with 455 million and India with 391 million. Combined, those three accounted for nearly 48% of the world total. Brazil and the Russian Federation formed the next tier, at 139 million and 120 million tonnes.

The ranking adds together FAOSTAT’s cereals-primary categories, including maize, paddy rice, wheat and smaller grains. Crop mixes differ by country, so two similar totals can represent very different farming systems and uses such as food, animal feed and industrial processing. China here means FAOSTAT’s country aggregate; its “China, mainland” row is a component and is not counted again. The chart covers the latest complete comparable crop-production year available in this dataset at the time of this update, rather than extrapolating a provisional 2025 or 2026 harvest.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

4. Top 10 wheat exporters by quantity, 2024

The Russian Federation led recorded wheat exports in calendar 2024 with 32.7 million tonnes. Canada shipped 25.5 million tonnes, followed by the United States with 21.8 million, Ukraine with 20.7 million and Australia with 19.7 million. France was the largest individual EU country in this list at 15.1 million tonnes. The order differs from a production ranking because exports also reflect domestic use, carryover stocks, port access and trade policy.

These are FAOSTAT merchandise-trade export quantities for the calendar year, not exports allocated to a crop marketing season. A shipment in 2024 may originate from an earlier harvest, and recorded exports can include re-exports. European Union members appear as individual countries here, so adding their figures is not the same as a single EU external-trade series; intra-EU movements can also be recorded. The ranking refers to wheat as the primary commodity, excluding wheat flour and other processed products. All numbers are rounded to one decimal million tonnes.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (trade)

5. Cereal production per person by country, 2024 (map)

Darker blue indicates a higher value. Grey indicates no comparable value. Hover over a country to see its figure; use the table for an accessible text view.

The geographical pattern changes when cereal harvests are divided by population. Lithuania recorded about 1,996 kilograms per resident in 2024, Australia 1,960, Argentina 1,876 and Canada 1,602. China and India produced much more grain overall, yet their far larger populations result in lower figures per person. High per-person output can indicate scope for grain exports, but actual shipments also depend on domestic use, stocks and trade policy. Hover over a shaded country for its value, or open the country table beneath the map.

Each value is FAOSTAT cereals-primary production in tonnes multiplied by 1,000 and divided by FAOSTAT’s 2024 population estimate. The map has no population threshold and includes countries or territories with comparable figures wherever the boundaries can display them. Grey indicates missing values; small territories can be invisible at this scale. Production per resident is not consumption, food available after losses and exports, or a measure of food security. Rice is counted at its pre-milling paddy weight.

Sources: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production); FAOSTAT – Annual population; Natural Earth – country boundaries

6. How continental shares of cereal production changed, 1970–2024

Asia’s share of world cereal production rose from about 40% in 1970 to nearly 50% in 2024. The Americas increased from 24% to 26%, while Europe’s share fell from about 29% to 15%. Africa rose from roughly 5% to 7%, and Oceania remained below 2%. These percentages complement the global wheat, maize and rice trends above: the world harvest expanded, but the geography of production also shifted.

The bars divide each continent’s reported cereal production by the FAOSTAT World total for the same year. A falling share does not necessarily mean a falling harvest: Europe produced more grain in 2024 than in 1970 despite its smaller fraction of the enlarged world total. The historical comparison also crosses changes in national borders and reporting, particularly around the former Soviet Union, so it should be interpreted as a broad continental pattern. Shares refer to harvested primary-cereal weight, including paddy rice before milling, rather than edible food or exports.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

7. What makes up the global cereal harvest, 2024

Maize contributed 1,218 million tonnes to the 2024 harvest, about 39% of all primary cereals by weight. Paddy rice and wheat were next at 820 million and 798 million tonnes, respectively. Barley supplied 142 million tonnes; sorghum and millet were smaller in world tonnage but remain important in particular farming systems.

This breakdown uses FAOSTAT’s primary crop categories. “Other cereals” is calculated as the cereals-primary world total minus the six named crops, so it includes additional grain types rather than a separate reported commodity. Rice is paddy rice, recorded before husks are removed; therefore its weight should not be mistaken for milled rice available to consumers. The circle shows relative crop volumes in one year only. It cannot establish the contribution of each cereal to human diets, because feed, seed, processing, trade and losses affect final use.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

8. Average world cereal yield, 1970–2024

Average global cereal yield rose from about 1.77 tonnes per harvested hectare in 1970 to 4.21 tonnes in 2024. Over the same interval, worldwide cereals-primary production increased from around 1.19 billion to 3.13 billion tonnes, while reported harvested area moved from about 675 million to 745 million hectares. The much larger increase in output than area makes yield a central part of the long-run production story.

FAOSTAT’s aggregate yield is calculated from production and harvested area across cereals, and can move when the mix of crops or producing regions changes. It is not the yield that every farmer achieved, nor a direct measure of environmental sustainability. The points are selected years; annual weather swings are hidden between them. Harvested area can include land harvested more than once during a year, so it differs from unique physical cropland. Values here are converted from FAOSTAT kilograms per hectare and rounded to two decimals.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

9. Top 10 paddy-rice producers, 2024

India harvested about 218 million tonnes of paddy rice in 2024 and China about 209 million tonnes. Together they contributed approximately 52% of the world’s 820 million tonne paddy crop. Bangladesh and Indonesia followed at roughly 61 million and 53 million tonnes, with Viet Nam, Thailand and Myanmar also prominent.

The figures are for unmilled paddy at harvest, not the weight of edible rice after milling. A tonne of paddy yields less than a tonne of milled rice, so this chart should not be compared directly with forecasts or trade reports stated in milled-rice equivalent. Some countries grow multiple rice crops in a year and report their harvests in aggregate. Output also differs from exports: large growers such as India and China have very different domestic consumption and trade profiles. Rounded values come from FAOSTAT’s 2024 crop table.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)

10. Largest increases in cereal production by country, 2010–2024

China’s primary-cereal production was about 154 million tonnes higher in 2024 than in 2010, the largest absolute gain among countries. India added around 127 million tonnes, followed by Brazil at 64 million, the Russian Federation at 61 million and the United States at 54 million. World output grew by roughly 662 million tonnes over the same period.

Each bar is the 2024 value minus the 2010 value for the same FAOSTAT country aggregate, rounded to one decimal million tonnes. This is an absolute change, not a percentage growth rate: large starting harvests make large gains more likely. Neither endpoint represents a multi-year average, so weather and cyclical harvest conditions can affect the comparison. It also cannot reveal how much of the gain came from greater harvested area, better yields or a changing balance between maize, rice, wheat and smaller cereals. Those questions require crop-specific analysis.

Source: FAOSTAT – Crops and livestock products (production)