Nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea
South Korea: Nitrogen fertilizer use was 211,405 tonnes in 2023. ▼ Falling
Nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2023, nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea stood at 211,405 tonnes.
That represents a change of down 12.7% on the previous year and down 5.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea peaked at 507,000 tonnes in 1997 and was at its lowest, 173,234 tonnes, in 1964.
That places South Korea 47th out of 201 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 234,871 tonnes | 173,234 tonnes | 320,123 tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 405,632 tonnes | 347,200 tonnes | 467,678 tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 423,311 tonnes | 308,600 tonnes | 505,744 tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 473,803 tonnes | 428,298 tonnes | 507,000 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 347,307 tonnes | 225,992 tonnes | 417,304 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 217,780 tonnes | 209,484 tonnes | 232,059 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 223,791 tonnes | 211,405 tonnes | 242,279 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More agriculture & rural data for South Korea
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 27.42 billion current US$ (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added 1.5% (2025)
- Rural population 9.73 million (2025)
- Rural population growth -0.2% (2025)
- Rural population 18.8% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.9% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.8% (2024)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.5% (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.5% (2025)
- Land under cereal production 776,099 hectares (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea?
- Nitrogen fertilizer use in South Korea was 211,405 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 South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 507,000 tonnes in 1997.
- What is the lowest nitrogen fertilizer use recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 173,234 tonnes in 1964.
- How does South Korea rank for nitrogen fertilizer use?
- South Korea ranks 47th out of 201 countries with data for 2023.
- Is nitrogen fertilizer use rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea 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
Measures total nitrogen inputs, including synthetic fertilizers alongside organic inputs from manure and crop fixation. Measured in tonnes of nitrogen.