Global meat production in Lesotho
Lesotho: Global meat production was 8,837 tonnes in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
8,837 tonnes
Change on year
down 1.8%
World rank
171st
of 202 countries
All-time high
27,010 tonnes
in 1988
All-time low
7,454 tonnes
in 1991
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Global meat production in Lesotho, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 8,837 tonnes for global meat production in 2024.
That represents a change of down 1.8% on the previous year and down 20.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, global meat production in Lesotho peaked at 27,010 tonnes in 1988 and was at its lowest, 7,454 tonnes, in 1991.
That places Lesotho 171st out of 202 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Global meat production in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 16,281 tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 17,166 tonnes | +5.4% |
| 1963 | 17,095 tonnes | -0.4% |
| 1964 | 15,146 tonnes | -11.4% |
| 1965 | 16,702 tonnes | +10.3% |
| 1966 | 13,642 tonnes | -18.3% |
| 1967 | 15,749 tonnes | +15.4% |
| 1968 | 14,704 tonnes | -6.6% |
| 1969 | 15,946 tonnes | +8.5% |
| 1970 | 18,409 tonnes | +15.4% |
| 1971 | 18,797 tonnes | +2.1% |
| 1972 | 19,324 tonnes | +2.8% |
| 1973 | 20,082 tonnes | +3.9% |
| 1974 | 20,666 tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1975 | 20,616 tonnes | -0.2% |
| 1976 | 19,884 tonnes | -3.6% |
| 1977 | 20,414 tonnes | +2.7% |
| 1978 | 21,554 tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1979 | 22,714 tonnes | +5.4% |
| 1980 | 23,440 tonnes | +3.2% |
| 1981 | 23,178 tonnes | -1.1% |
| 1982 | 24,620 tonnes | +6.2% |
| 1983 | 25,030 tonnes | +1.7% |
| 1984 | 25,200 tonnes | +0.7% |
| 1985 | 25,820 tonnes | +2.5% |
| 1986 | 26,560 tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1987 | 26,690 tonnes | +0.5% |
| 1988 | 27,010 tonnes | +1.2% |
| 1989 | 25,965 tonnes | -3.9% |
| 1990 | 24,295 tonnes | -6.4% |
| 1991 | 7,454 tonnes | -69.3% |
| 1992 | 8,007 tonnes | +7.4% |
| 1993 | 8,321 tonnes | +3.9% |
| 1994 | 8,226 tonnes | -1.1% |
| 1995 | 8,772 tonnes | +6.6% |
| 1996 | 8,494 tonnes | -3.2% |
| 1997 | 8,927 tonnes | +5.1% |
| 1998 | 8,330 tonnes | -6.7% |
| 1999 | 9,961 tonnes | +19.6% |
| 2000 | 10,195 tonnes | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 10,270 tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 9,796 tonnes | -4.6% |
| 2003 | 9,510 tonnes | -2.9% |
| 2004 | 9,808 tonnes | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 10,454 tonnes | +6.6% |
| 2006 | 11,136 tonnes | +6.5% |
| 2007 | 10,351 tonnes | -7.0% |
| 2008 | 10,124 tonnes | -2.2% |
| 2009 | 9,082 tonnes | -10.3% |
| 2010 | 8,364 tonnes | -7.9% |
| 2011 | 9,834 tonnes | +17.6% |
| 2012 | 10,164 tonnes | +3.4% |
| 2013 | 9,552 tonnes | -6.0% |
| 2014 | 11,108 tonnes | +16.3% |
| 2015 | 10,781 tonnes | -2.9% |
| 2016 | 10,698 tonnes | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 9,346 tonnes | -12.6% |
| 2018 | 9,153 tonnes | -2.1% |
| 2019 | 8,617 tonnes | -5.9% |
| 2020 | 9,725 tonnes | +12.9% |
| 2021 | 8,803 tonnes | -9.5% |
| 2022 | 8,821 tonnes | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 8,999 tonnes | +2.0% |
| 2024 | 8,837 tonnes | -1.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 8,837 tonnes is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 323,365 tonnes, 3% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 8,837 tonnes is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 169,373 tonnes, 5% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Global meat production in Lesotho 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | -69.3% | 24,295 tonnes | 7,454 tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 15,826 tonnes | 13,642 tonnes | 17,166 tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 20,246 tonnes | 18,409 tonnes | 22,714 tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 25,351 tonnes | 23,178 tonnes | 27,010 tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 10,079 tonnes | 7,454 tonnes | 24,295 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 10,072 tonnes | 9,082 tonnes | 11,136 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 9,762 tonnes | 8,364 tonnes | 11,108 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 9,037 tonnes | 8,803 tonnes | 9,725 tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More agriculture & rural data for Lesotho
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0649 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 70.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.6715 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0005 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5533 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 6.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 6.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 5.1% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 2.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is global meat production in Lesotho?
- Global meat production in Lesotho was 8,837 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 global meat production recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 27,010 tonnes in 1988.
- What is the lowest global meat production recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 7,454 tonnes in 1991.
- How does Lesotho rank for global meat production?
- Lesotho ranks 171st out of 202 countries with data for 2024.
- Is global meat production rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 20.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho 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 Global meat 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).