Arable land in Euro area
Euro area: Arable land was 23.3% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Arable land in Euro area, 1961–2023
Source: FAO electronic files and website, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
Euro area recorded 23.3% for arable land in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arable land in Euro area peaked at 30.6% in 1961 and was at its lowest, 23.3%, in 2023.
Euro area ranks 5th of 47 groups on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Arable land in Euro area, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 30.6% | — |
| 1962 | 30.5% | -0.2% |
| 1963 | 30.4% | -0.3% |
| 1964 | 30.1% | -1.0% |
| 1965 | 30.0% | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 29.6% | -1.3% |
| 1967 | 29.4% | -0.5% |
| 1968 | 29.2% | -0.8% |
| 1969 | 29.2% | -0.0% |
| 1970 | 28.9% | -1.2% |
| 1971 | 28.0% | -3.1% |
| 1972 | 27.9% | -0.4% |
| 1973 | 27.7% | -0.7% |
| 1974 | 27.7% | -0.0% |
| 1975 | 27.5% | -0.4% |
| 1976 | 27.4% | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 27.5% | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 27.6% | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 27.5% | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 27.5% | -0.1% |
| 1981 | 27.5% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 27.5% | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 27.3% | -0.7% |
| 1984 | 27.4% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 27.4% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 27.4% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 27.5% | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 27.3% | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 27.2% | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 27.2% | -0.2% |
| 1991 | 27.0% | -0.9% |
| 1992 | 27.1% | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 27.1% | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 26.9% | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 26.4% | -1.9% |
| 1996 | 26.5% | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 26.5% | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 26.1% | -1.6% |
| 1999 | 26.0% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 25.9% | -0.6% |
| 2001 | 25.1% | -3.0% |
| 2002 | 25.0% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 24.8% | -0.6% |
| 2004 | 24.9% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 24.8% | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 24.5% | -1.2% |
| 2007 | 24.3% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 24.4% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 24.3% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 24.4% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 24.2% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 24.5% | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 24.3% | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 24.2% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 24.1% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 24.1% | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 24.1% | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 23.8% | -1.1% |
| 2019 | 23.8% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 23.4% | -1.6% |
| 2021 | 23.4% | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 23.4% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 23.3% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 29.9% | 29.2% | 30.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 27.8% | 27.4% | 28.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 27.4% | 27.2% | 27.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.7% | 26.0% | 27.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.8% | 24.3% | 25.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 24.2% | 23.8% | 24.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.4% | 23.3% | 23.4% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Euro area
More agriculture & rural data for Euro area
- Rural population, per capita 0.2252 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.5% (2025)
- Rural population 80.79 million (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.3% (2025)
- Rural population 22.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.2% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.3% (2024)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 776.52 current US$ per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 8.91 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0155 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arable land in Euro area?
- Arable land in Euro area was 23.3% in 2023, according to FAO electronic files and website, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
- What is the highest arable land recorded in Euro area?
- The highest recorded value was 30.6% in 1961.
- What is the lowest arable land recorded in Euro area?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.3% in 2023.
- How does Euro area rank for arable land?
- Euro area ranks 5th out of 47 groups with data for 2023.
- Is arable land rising or falling in Euro area?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Euro area data come from?
- The figures come from FAO electronic files and website, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), published as part of Arable land (% of land area). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow. Land abandoned as a result of shifting cultivation is excluded.