Nitrogen fertilizer use in France

France: Nitrogen fertilizer use was 1.73 million tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
1.73 million tonnes
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
13th
of 201 countries
All-time high
2.66 million tonnes
in 1989
All-time low
624,700 tonnes
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023

Nitrogen fertilizer use in France, 1961–2023

500.0k1.0M1.5M2.0M2.5M196119922023

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

France recorded 1.73 million tonnes for nitrogen fertilizer use in 2023.

The figure is down 20.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nitrogen fertilizer use in France peaked at 2.66 million tonnes in 1989 and was at its lowest, 624,700 tonnes, in 1961.

France ranks 13th of 201 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 937,428 tonnes 624,700 tonnes 1.24 million tonnes 9
1970s 1.74 million tonnes 1.45 million tonnes 2.13 million tonnes 10
1980s 2.40 million tonnes 2.15 million tonnes 2.66 million tonnes 10
1990s 2.42 million tonnes 2.15 million tonnes 2.57 million tonnes 10
2000s 2.24 million tonnes 1.90 million tonnes 2.40 million tonnes 10
2010s 2.13 million tonnes 1.94 million tonnes 2.35 million tonnes 10
2020s 1.89 million tonnes 1.73 million tonnes 2.09 million tonnes 4

Countries ranked near France

  1. 10 Australia 2.15 million tonnes compare
  2. 11 Turkey 1.95 million tonnes compare
  3. 12 Vietnam 1.76 million tonnes compare
  4. 14 Bangladesh 1.50 million tonnes compare
  5. 15 Mexico 1.37 million tonnes compare
  6. 16 Egypt 1.28 million tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 202 places →

More agriculture & rural data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is nitrogen fertilizer use in France?
Nitrogen fertilizer use in France was 1.73 million tonnes 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 nitrogen fertilizer use recorded in France?
The highest recorded value was 2.66 million tonnes in 1989.
What is the lowest nitrogen fertilizer use recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 624,700 tonnes in 1961.
How does France rank for nitrogen fertilizer use?
France ranks 13th out of 201 countries with data for 2023.
Is nitrogen fertilizer use rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 20.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
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 Nitrogen fertilizer 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

Indicator
Nitrogen fertilizer use
Unit
tonnes
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
202 places, 10,271 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed

Measures total nitrogen inputs, including synthetic fertilizers alongside organic inputs from manure and crop fixation. Measured in tonnes of nitrogen.