Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population was 1.21 million hectares in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.21 million hectares
Change on year
down 2.8%
World rank
75th
of 186 countries
All-time high
1.28 million hectares
in 2015
All-time low
472,886 hectares
in 1965
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Sri Lanka recorded 1.21 million hectares for change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in 2024.
That represents a change of down 2.8% on the previous year and up 26.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka peaked at 1.28 million hectares in 2015 and was at its lowest, 472,886 hectares, in 1965.
That places Sri Lanka 75th out of 186 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 539,171 hectares | — |
| 1962 | 568,096 hectares | +5.4% |
| 1963 | 582,457 hectares | +2.5% |
| 1964 | 573,881 hectares | -1.5% |
| 1965 | 472,886 hectares | -17.6% |
| 1966 | 583,713 hectares | +23.4% |
| 1967 | 584,108 hectares | +0.1% |
| 1968 | 606,910 hectares | +3.9% |
| 1969 | 582,000 hectares | -4.1% |
| 1970 | 763,084 hectares | +31.1% |
| 1971 | 732,973 hectares | -3.9% |
| 1972 | 682,632 hectares | -6.9% |
| 1973 | 734,307 hectares | +7.6% |
| 1974 | 875,379 hectares | +19.2% |
| 1975 | 691,085 hectares | -21.1% |
| 1976 | 720,940 hectares | +4.3% |
| 1977 | 849,810 hectares | +17.9% |
| 1978 | 901,205 hectares | +6.0% |
| 1979 | 836,292 hectares | -7.2% |
| 1980 | 867,782 hectares | +3.8% |
| 1981 | 889,293 hectares | +2.5% |
| 1982 | 795,759 hectares | -10.5% |
| 1983 | 824,826 hectares | +3.7% |
| 1984 | 937,257 hectares | +13.6% |
| 1985 | 912,657 hectares | -2.6% |
| 1986 | 882,311 hectares | -3.3% |
| 1987 | 726,403 hectares | -17.7% |
| 1988 | 865,221 hectares | +19.1% |
| 1989 | 729,393 hectares | -15.7% |
| 1990 | 869,766 hectares | +19.2% |
| 1991 | 830,505 hectares | -4.5% |
| 1992 | 802,603 hectares | -3.4% |
| 1993 | 862,816 hectares | +7.5% |
| 1994 | 938,132 hectares | +8.7% |
| 1995 | 933,651 hectares | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 697,613 hectares | -25.3% |
| 1997 | 721,837 hectares | +3.5% |
| 1998 | 803,160 hectares | +11.3% |
| 1999 | 906,530 hectares | +12.9% |
| 2000 | 867,548 hectares | -4.3% |
| 2001 | 796,560 hectares | -8.2% |
| 2002 | 848,790 hectares | +6.6% |
| 2003 | 946,340 hectares | +11.5% |
| 2004 | 748,720 hectares | -20.9% |
| 2005 | 950,200 hectares | +26.9% |
| 2006 | 948,663 hectares | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 856,543 hectares | -9.7% |
| 2008 | 1.11 million hectares | +29.7% |
| 2009 | 999,340 hectares | -10.0% |
| 2010 | 1.12 million hectares | +12.5% |
| 2011 | 1.15 million hectares | +2.0% |
| 2012 | 1.13 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 1.26 million hectares | +11.5% |
| 2014 | 955,662 hectares | -24.3% |
| 2015 | 1.28 million hectares | +34.1% |
| 2016 | 1.22 million hectares | -5.2% |
| 2017 | 848,534 hectares | -30.2% |
| 2018 | 1.12 million hectares | +31.8% |
| 2019 | 1.03 million hectares | -8.3% |
| 2020 | 1.15 million hectares | +12.1% |
| 2021 | 1.24 million hectares | +7.9% |
| 2022 | 1.21 million hectares | -2.6% |
| 2023 | 1.25 million hectares | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 1.21 million hectares | -2.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 565,914 hectares | 472,886 hectares | 606,910 hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 778,771 hectares | 682,632 hectares | 901,205 hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 843,090 hectares | 726,403 hectares | 937,257 hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 836,661 hectares | 697,613 hectares | 938,132 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 907,354 hectares | 748,720 hectares | 1.11 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.11 million hectares | 848,534 hectares | 1.28 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.21 million hectares | 1.15 million hectares | 1.25 million hectares | 5 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More agriculture & rural data for Sri Lanka
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.1 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0836 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 418.3 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9172 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.7955 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.4% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 2.7% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.9% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka?
- Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population in Sri Lanka was 1.21 million hectares 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 change in cereal production, yield, land use and population recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 1.28 million hectares in 2015.
- What is the lowest change in cereal production, yield, land use and population recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 472,886 hectares in 1965.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for change in cereal production, yield, land use and population?
- Sri Lanka ranks 75th out of 186 countries with data for 2024.
- Is change in cereal production, yield, land use and population rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 26.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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 Change in cereal production, yield, land use and population. 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.