Cereal production in South Africa
South Africa: Cereal production was 15.31 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
15.31 million
Change on year
down 19.5%
World rank
33rd
of 186 countries
All-time high
19.59 million
in 2017
All-time low
5.06 million
in 1992
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cereal production in South Africa, 1961–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 15.31 million for cereal production in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 19.5% on the previous year and down 7.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cereal production in South Africa peaked at 19.59 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 5.06 million, in 1992.
South Africa ranks 33rd of 186 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cereal production in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 6.70 million | — |
| 1962 | 7.09 million | +5.9% |
| 1963 | 7.46 million | +5.2% |
| 1964 | 5.84 million | -21.7% |
| 1965 | 5.84 million | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 6.18 million | +5.8% |
| 1967 | 11.87 million | +91.9% |
| 1968 | 7.00 million | -41.0% |
| 1969 | 7.05 million | +0.7% |
| 1970 | 8.14 million | +15.4% |
| 1971 | 11.03 million | +35.5% |
| 1972 | 11.95 million | +8.4% |
| 1973 | 6.47 million | -45.9% |
| 1974 | 13.58 million | +110.0% |
| 1975 | 11.56 million | -14.9% |
| 1976 | 10.27 million | -11.1% |
| 1977 | 12.30 million | +19.8% |
| 1978 | 12.76 million | +3.7% |
| 1979 | 11.20 million | -12.2% |
| 1980 | 13.38 million | +19.4% |
| 1981 | 18.00 million | +34.6% |
| 1982 | 11.76 million | -34.7% |
| 1983 | 6.67 million | -43.3% |
| 1984 | 7.93 million | +18.8% |
| 1985 | 11.06 million | +39.5% |
| 1986 | 11.69 million | +5.7% |
| 1987 | 12.10 million | +3.5% |
| 1988 | 12.14 million | +0.4% |
| 1989 | 15.34 million | +26.4% |
| 1990 | 11.56 million | -24.7% |
| 1991 | 11.29 million | -2.3% |
| 1992 | 5.06 million | -55.2% |
| 1993 | 12.81 million | +153.3% |
| 1994 | 15.99 million | +24.8% |
| 1995 | 7.51 million | -53.0% |
| 1996 | 13.67 million | +81.9% |
| 1997 | 13.25 million | -3.0% |
| 1998 | 10.23 million | -22.8% |
| 1999 | 10.06 million | -1.7% |
| 2000 | 14.55 million | +44.6% |
| 2001 | 10.71 million | -26.4% |
| 2002 | 13.05 million | +21.8% |
| 2003 | 11.82 million | -9.4% |
| 2004 | 12.03 million | +1.8% |
| 2005 | 14.18 million | +17.9% |
| 2006 | 9.45 million | -33.3% |
| 2007 | 9.51 million | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 15.34 million | +61.3% |
| 2009 | 14.57 million | -5.0% |
| 2010 | 14.70 million | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 12.93 million | -12.1% |
| 2012 | 14.56 million | +12.6% |
| 2013 | 14.15 million | -2.8% |
| 2014 | 16.62 million | +17.4% |
| 2015 | 12.58 million | -24.3% |
| 2016 | 10.63 million | -15.5% |
| 2017 | 19.59 million | +84.3% |
| 2018 | 15.57 million | -20.5% |
| 2019 | 13.87 million | -10.9% |
| 2020 | 18.79 million | +35.5% |
| 2021 | 19.23 million | +2.4% |
| 2022 | 18.04 million | -6.2% |
| 2023 | 19.02 million | +5.4% |
| 2024 | 15.31 million | -19.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 15.31 million is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.49 million, 10.3× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 15.31 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.65 million, 9.3× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cereal production 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 | +153.3% | 5.06 million | 12.81 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 7.23 million | 5.84 million | 11.87 million | 9 |
| 1970s | 10.93 million | 6.47 million | 13.58 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 12.01 million | 6.67 million | 18.00 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 11.14 million | 5.06 million | 15.99 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.52 million | 9.45 million | 15.34 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.52 million | 10.63 million | 19.59 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.08 million | 15.31 million | 19.23 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More agriculture & rural data for South Africa
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 0.1917 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0.0002 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 1.49 hectares per person (2025)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cereal production in South Africa?
- Cereal production in South Africa was 15.31 million in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cereal production recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 19.59 million in 2017.
- What is the lowest cereal production recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.06 million in 1992.
- How does South Africa rank for cereal production?
- South Africa ranks 33rd out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cereal production rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from 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).