Bean yields in South Africa
South Africa: Bean yields was 1.28 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.28 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
down 6.9%
World rank
61st
of 133 countries
All-time high
1.56 tonnes per hectare
in 1990
All-time low
0.5169 tonnes per hectare
in 1992
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Bean yields in South Africa, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 1.28 tonnes per hectare for bean yields in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.9% on the previous year and down 13.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, bean yields in South Africa peaked at 1.56 tonnes per hectare in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0.5169 tonnes per hectare, in 1992.
South Africa ranks 61st of 133 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Bean yields in South Africa, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.7397 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 0.6786 tonnes per hectare | -8.3% |
| 1963 | 0.6032 tonnes per hectare | -11.1% |
| 1964 | 0.6154 tonnes per hectare | +2.0% |
| 1965 | 0.6818 tonnes per hectare | +10.8% |
| 1966 | 0.7692 tonnes per hectare | +12.8% |
| 1967 | 1.03 tonnes per hectare | +33.4% |
| 1968 | 0.8714 tonnes per hectare | -15.1% |
| 1969 | 0.8033 tonnes per hectare | -7.8% |
| 1970 | 0.8103 tonnes per hectare | +0.9% |
| 1971 | 1.07 tonnes per hectare | +31.9% |
| 1972 | 0.9841 tonnes per hectare | -7.9% |
| 1973 | 0.7857 tonnes per hectare | -20.2% |
| 1974 | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | +50.3% |
| 1975 | 0.6262 tonnes per hectare | -47.0% |
| 1976 | 0.7019 tonnes per hectare | +12.1% |
| 1977 | 0.9892 tonnes per hectare | +40.9% |
| 1978 | 1.03 tonnes per hectare | +4.0% |
| 1979 | 0.6212 tonnes per hectare | -39.6% |
| 1980 | 1.11 tonnes per hectare | +79.1% |
| 1981 | 1.36 tonnes per hectare | +21.9% |
| 1982 | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | -12.8% |
| 1983 | 0.6709 tonnes per hectare | -43.3% |
| 1984 | 0.814 tonnes per hectare | +21.3% |
| 1985 | 1.3 tonnes per hectare | +59.5% |
| 1986 | 1.21 tonnes per hectare | -6.8% |
| 1987 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | -6.0% |
| 1988 | 1.26 tonnes per hectare | +10.7% |
| 1989 | 1.46 tonnes per hectare | +16.1% |
| 1990 | 1.56 tonnes per hectare | +6.9% |
| 1991 | 1.27 tonnes per hectare | -18.9% |
| 1992 | 0.5169 tonnes per hectare | -59.2% |
| 1993 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | +153.2% |
| 1994 | 0.8073 tonnes per hectare | -38.3% |
| 1995 | 0.7574 tonnes per hectare | -6.2% |
| 1996 | 0.8812 tonnes per hectare | +16.3% |
| 1997 | 1.11 tonnes per hectare | +25.6% |
| 1998 | 1.09 tonnes per hectare | -1.8% |
| 1999 | 1.17 tonnes per hectare | +8.0% |
| 2000 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -14.5% |
| 2001 | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | +17.2% |
| 2002 | 1.31 tonnes per hectare | +11.8% |
| 2003 | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | -10.1% |
| 2004 | 1.42 tonnes per hectare | +20.4% |
| 2005 | 1.42 tonnes per hectare | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 1.23 tonnes per hectare | -13.5% |
| 2007 | 0.7796 tonnes per hectare | -36.4% |
| 2008 | 1.35 tonnes per hectare | +72.7% |
| 2009 | 1.53 tonnes per hectare | +13.7% |
| 2010 | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | -22.6% |
| 2011 | 1 tonnes per hectare | -15.4% |
| 2012 | 1.2 tonnes per hectare | +19.8% |
| 2013 | 1.38 tonnes per hectare | +15.2% |
| 2014 | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | +6.4% |
| 2015 | 1.15 tonnes per hectare | -22.1% |
| 2016 | 1.03 tonnes per hectare | -10.1% |
| 2017 | 1.52 tonnes per hectare | +47.6% |
| 2018 | 1.3 tonnes per hectare | -14.5% |
| 2019 | 1.12 tonnes per hectare | -13.9% |
| 2020 | 1.29 tonnes per hectare | +15.5% |
| 2021 | 1.22 tonnes per hectare | -5.8% |
| 2022 | 1.23 tonnes per hectare | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | +11.9% |
| 2024 | 1.28 tonnes per hectare | -6.9% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 1.28 tonnes per hectare is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.23 tonnes per hectare, 1.0× the median. (40 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 1.28 tonnes per hectare is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.7242 tonnes per hectare, 1.8× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Bean yields in South Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | +153.2% | 0.5169 tonnes per hectare | 1.31 tonnes per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.7543 tonnes per hectare | 0.6032 tonnes per hectare | 1.03 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 0.8797 tonnes per hectare | 0.6212 tonnes per hectare | 1.18 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.15 tonnes per hectare | 0.6709 tonnes per hectare | 1.46 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.05 tonnes per hectare | 0.5169 tonnes per hectare | 1.56 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.24 tonnes per hectare | 0.7796 tonnes per hectare | 1.53 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.24 tonnes per hectare | 1 tonnes per hectare | 1.52 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.28 tonnes per hectare | 1.22 tonnes per hectare | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More agriculture & rural data for South Africa
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 7.11 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0283 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 186.56 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.812 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3618 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.8% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.0% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is bean yields in South Africa?
- Bean yields in South Africa was 1.28 tonnes per hectare in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest bean yields recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 1.56 tonnes per hectare in 1990.
- What is the lowest bean yields recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5169 tonnes per hectare in 1992.
- How does South Africa rank for bean yields?
- South Africa ranks 61st out of 133 countries with data for 2024.
- Is bean yields rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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 Bean yields. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.