Share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia
Malaysia: Share of cereals allocated to human food was 59.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia stood at 59.1%.
The figure is down 2.3% on the previous year and up 4.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia peaked at 94.5% in 1961 and was at its lowest, 51.4%, in 2003.
That places Malaysia 100th out of 192 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 94.5% | — |
| 1962 | 93.0% | -1.6% |
| 1963 | 92.9% | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 92.3% | -0.7% |
| 1965 | 93.0% | +0.7% |
| 1966 | 89.4% | -3.8% |
| 1967 | 89.3% | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 87.1% | -2.5% |
| 1969 | 88.1% | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 86.7% | -1.6% |
| 1971 | 86.4% | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 87.0% | +0.7% |
| 1973 | 87.0% | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 86.5% | -0.6% |
| 1975 | 85.0% | -1.7% |
| 1976 | 85.6% | +0.8% |
| 1977 | 80.3% | -6.2% |
| 1978 | 78.0% | -2.8% |
| 1979 | 75.7% | -3.1% |
| 1980 | 75.0% | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 74.0% | -1.5% |
| 1982 | 70.8% | -4.3% |
| 1983 | 69.2% | -2.2% |
| 1984 | 67.1% | -3.1% |
| 1985 | 62.5% | -6.9% |
| 1986 | 62.8% | +0.5% |
| 1987 | 62.2% | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 61.0% | -1.9% |
| 1989 | 58.9% | -3.5% |
| 1990 | 57.4% | -2.4% |
| 1991 | 60.8% | +6.0% |
| 1992 | 58.2% | -4.4% |
| 1993 | 56.1% | -3.6% |
| 1994 | 58.4% | +4.1% |
| 1995 | 54.8% | -6.2% |
| 1996 | 57.0% | +4.0% |
| 1997 | 54.3% | -4.7% |
| 1998 | 65.0% | +19.6% |
| 1999 | 61.2% | -5.7% |
| 2000 | 61.0% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 63.5% | +4.0% |
| 2002 | 59.4% | -6.5% |
| 2003 | 51.4% | -13.3% |
| 2004 | 55.2% | +7.3% |
| 2005 | 59.8% | +8.3% |
| 2006 | 54.3% | -9.2% |
| 2007 | 60.1% | +10.6% |
| 2008 | 64.7% | +7.8% |
| 2009 | 58.7% | -9.4% |
| 2010 | 58.0% | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 59.5% | +2.6% |
| 2012 | 57.0% | -4.2% |
| 2013 | 56.4% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 52.9% | -6.1% |
| 2015 | 57.8% | +9.1% |
| 2016 | 53.3% | -7.7% |
| 2017 | 54.0% | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 54.9% | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 56.6% | +3.1% |
| 2020 | 57.2% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 57.8% | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 60.6% | +4.8% |
| 2023 | 59.1% | -2.3% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 59.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 55.5%, 1.1× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 59.1% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 76.1%, 78% of the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 91.1% | 87.1% | 94.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 83.8% | 75.7% | 87.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 66.3% | 58.9% | 75.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 58.3% | 54.3% | 65.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 58.8% | 51.4% | 64.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 56.0% | 52.9% | 59.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 58.7% | 57.2% | 60.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More agriculture & rural data for Malaysia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.04 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0822 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,078 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.913 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.2261 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 8.2% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 8.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.3% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia?
- Share of cereals allocated to human food in Malaysia was 59.1% 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 share of cereals allocated to human food recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 94.5% in 1961.
- What is the lowest share of cereals allocated to human food recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 51.4% in 2003.
- How does Malaysia rank for share of cereals allocated to human food?
- Malaysia ranks 100th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of cereals allocated to human food rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia 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 Share of cereals allocated to human food. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of cereals available for domestic use – after accounting for trade – that is allocated to direct human consumption, relative to the total used for human food, animal feed, and industrial purposes. This excludes cereals used for seed, processing, and losses.