Cereal production in China
China: Cereal production was 651.36 million tonnes in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
651.36 million tonnes
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
1st
of 186 countries
All-time high
651.36 million tonnes
in 2024
All-time low
107.00 million tonnes
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cereal production in China, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2024, cereal production in China stood at 651.36 million tonnes. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 16.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal production in China peaked at 651.36 million tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 107.00 million tonnes, in 1961.
China ranks 1st of 186 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cereal production in China, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 107.00 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 117.64 million tonnes | +9.9% |
| 1963 | 134.72 million tonnes | +14.5% |
| 1964 | 149.43 million tonnes | +10.9% |
| 1965 | 159.09 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 1966 | 174.50 million tonnes | +9.7% |
| 1967 | 178.02 million tonnes | +2.0% |
| 1968 | 173.85 million tonnes | -2.3% |
| 1969 | 173.47 million tonnes | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 197.63 million tonnes | +13.9% |
| 1971 | 209.13 million tonnes | +5.8% |
| 1972 | 203.34 million tonnes | -2.8% |
| 1973 | 218.89 million tonnes | +7.6% |
| 1974 | 231.39 million tonnes | +5.7% |
| 1975 | 241.19 million tonnes | +4.2% |
| 1976 | 246.66 million tonnes | +2.3% |
| 1977 | 239.82 million tonnes | -2.8% |
| 1978 | 269.82 million tonnes | +12.5% |
| 1979 | 289.52 million tonnes | +7.3% |
| 1980 | 277.19 million tonnes | -4.3% |
| 1981 | 283.33 million tonnes | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 312.08 million tonnes | +10.1% |
| 1983 | 342.27 million tonnes | +9.7% |
| 1984 | 362.82 million tonnes | +6.0% |
| 1985 | 336.76 million tonnes | -7.2% |
| 1986 | 349.16 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 1987 | 356.37 million tonnes | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 349.00 million tonnes | -2.1% |
| 1989 | 364.82 million tonnes | +4.5% |
| 1990 | 403.00 million tonnes | +10.5% |
| 1991 | 396.10 million tonnes | -1.7% |
| 1992 | 401.70 million tonnes | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 405.17 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1994 | 393.89 million tonnes | -2.8% |
| 1995 | 416.11 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1996 | 451.05 million tonnes | +8.4% |
| 1997 | 443.49 million tonnes | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 456.25 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1999 | 453.04 million tonnes | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 405.22 million tonnes | -10.6% |
| 2001 | 396.48 million tonnes | -2.2% |
| 2002 | 396.68 million tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 374.82 million tonnes | -5.5% |
| 2004 | 411.57 million tonnes | +9.8% |
| 2005 | 427.76 million tonnes | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 451.11 million tonnes | +5.5% |
| 2007 | 456.66 million tonnes | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 479.05 million tonnes | +4.9% |
| 2009 | 482.55 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 497.79 million tonnes | +3.2% |
| 2011 | 521.52 million tonnes | +4.8% |
| 2012 | 541.70 million tonnes | +3.9% |
| 2013 | 555.20 million tonnes | +2.5% |
| 2014 | 560.17 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 617.71 million tonnes | +10.3% |
| 2016 | 614.57 million tonnes | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 614.07 million tonnes | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 608.88 million tonnes | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 612.71 million tonnes | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 615.32 million tonnes | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 631.55 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2022 | 632.10 million tonnes | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 640.58 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 2024 | 651.36 million tonnes | +1.7% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 651.36 million tonnes is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.49 million tonnes, 438.1× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- China's 651.36 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.19 million tonnes, 204.5× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 151.97 million tonnes | 107.00 million tonnes | 178.02 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 234.74 million tonnes | 197.63 million tonnes | 289.52 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 333.38 million tonnes | 277.19 million tonnes | 364.82 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 421.98 million tonnes | 393.89 million tonnes | 456.25 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 428.19 million tonnes | 374.82 million tonnes | 482.55 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 574.43 million tonnes | 497.79 million tonnes | 617.71 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 634.18 million tonnes | 615.32 million tonnes | 651.36 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More agriculture & rural data for China
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 1.98 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0666 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 923.03 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -1.48 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3366 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.7% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.3% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal production in China?
- Cereal production in China was 651.36 million tonnes 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 cereal production recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 651.36 million tonnes in 2024.
- What is the lowest cereal production recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 107.00 million tonnes in 1961.
- How does China rank for cereal production?
- China ranks 1st out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cereal production rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China 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 Cereal production. 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
Cereals include wheat, rice, maize, barley, oats, rye, millet, sorghum, buckwheat, and mixed grains.