Agricultural land use in France
France: Agricultural land use was 28.30 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Agricultural land use in France, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, agricultural land use in France stood at 28.30 million hectares. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, agricultural land use in France peaked at 34.54 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 28.30 million hectares, in 2023.
France ranks 41st of 226 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 33.92 million hectares | 33.17 million hectares | 34.54 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 32.26 million hectares | 31.83 million hectares | 32.62 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.39 million hectares | 30.74 million hectares | 31.72 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 30.22 million hectares | 29.93 million hectares | 30.59 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 29.42 million hectares | 29.02 million hectares | 29.81 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.75 million hectares | 28.52 million hectares | 28.93 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 28.38 million hectares | 28.30 million hectares | 28.43 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near France
- 38 Morocco 29.79 million hectares compare
- 39 Kenya 28.77 million hectares compare
- 40 South Sudan 28.35 million hectares compare
- 42 Cote d'Ivoire 27.50 million hectares compare
- 43 Botswana 25.86 million hectares compare
- 44 Uzbekistan 25.58 million hectares compare
More agriculture & rural data for France
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 47.24 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.4% (2025)
- Rural population 14.54 million (2025)
- Rural population growth 0.0% (2025)
- Rural population 21.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.0% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.4% (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.4% (2025)
- Land under cereal production 8.53 million hectares (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is agricultural land use in France?
- Agricultural land use in France was 28.30 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest agricultural land use recorded in France?
- The highest recorded value was 34.54 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest agricultural land use recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 28.30 million hectares in 2023.
- How does France rank for agricultural land use?
- France ranks 41st out of 226 countries with data for 2023.
- Is agricultural land use rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this France data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Agricultural land use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Land used for cultivation of crops and animal husbandry. The total of areas under cropland and permanent meadows and pastures.