Share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Share of cereals allocated to human food was 82.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua is 82.1%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 8.6% on the previous year and up 55.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua peaked at 88.5% in 1989 and was at its lowest, 52.9%, in 2013.
That places Nicaragua 58th 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 Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 86.0% | — |
| 1962 | 87.6% | +1.8% |
| 1963 | 84.8% | -3.1% |
| 1964 | 86.3% | +1.8% |
| 1965 | 86.6% | +0.3% |
| 1966 | 85.1% | -1.7% |
| 1967 | 85.6% | +0.5% |
| 1968 | 80.7% | -5.7% |
| 1969 | 85.5% | +5.9% |
| 1970 | 84.0% | -1.8% |
| 1971 | 85.4% | +1.7% |
| 1972 | 87.1% | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 82.2% | -5.7% |
| 1974 | 86.0% | +4.7% |
| 1975 | 87.3% | +1.5% |
| 1976 | 87.2% | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 82.6% | -5.2% |
| 1978 | 86.2% | +4.4% |
| 1979 | 86.8% | +0.7% |
| 1980 | 84.5% | -2.7% |
| 1981 | 84.3% | -0.1% |
| 1982 | 86.3% | +2.3% |
| 1983 | 85.3% | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 84.3% | -1.2% |
| 1985 | 78.4% | -6.9% |
| 1986 | 79.2% | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 81.3% | +2.7% |
| 1988 | 82.4% | +1.3% |
| 1989 | 88.5% | +7.4% |
| 1990 | 76.1% | -14.0% |
| 1991 | 80.6% | +5.9% |
| 1992 | 71.4% | -11.4% |
| 1993 | 76.6% | +7.3% |
| 1994 | 83.1% | +8.5% |
| 1995 | 82.5% | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 83.7% | +1.5% |
| 1997 | 82.5% | -1.5% |
| 1998 | 83.4% | +1.1% |
| 1999 | 84.3% | +1.1% |
| 2000 | 81.1% | -3.8% |
| 2001 | 80.5% | -0.8% |
| 2002 | 76.8% | -4.5% |
| 2003 | 78.6% | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 83.0% | +5.6% |
| 2005 | 80.9% | -2.5% |
| 2006 | 82.0% | +1.4% |
| 2007 | 80.6% | -1.8% |
| 2008 | 83.3% | +3.4% |
| 2009 | 84.7% | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 77.2% | -9.0% |
| 2011 | 80.5% | +4.3% |
| 2012 | 82.0% | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 52.9% | -35.5% |
| 2014 | 82.6% | +56.0% |
| 2015 | 84.4% | +2.2% |
| 2016 | 82.6% | -2.2% |
| 2017 | 84.8% | +2.7% |
| 2018 | 86.2% | +1.6% |
| 2019 | 83.8% | -2.7% |
| 2020 | 79.7% | -5.0% |
| 2021 | 78.1% | -2.0% |
| 2022 | 75.6% | -3.2% |
| 2023 | 82.1% | +8.6% |
Nicaragua compared with similar countries
- Nicaragua's 82.1% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 75.2%, 1.1× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Nicaragua's 82.1% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 55.5%, 1.5× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | +56.0% | 52.9% | 82.6% |
| 2013 | -35.5% | 82.0% | 52.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 85.4% | 80.7% | 87.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 85.5% | 82.2% | 87.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 83.4% | 78.4% | 88.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 80.4% | 71.4% | 84.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 81.2% | 76.8% | 84.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 79.7% | 52.9% | 86.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 78.9% | 75.6% | 82.1% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
More agriculture & rural data for Nicaragua
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 12.55 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1448 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 459.4 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.8714 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.4056 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 14.5% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 14.5% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.6% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua?
- Share of cereals allocated to human food in Nicaragua was 82.1% 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 Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 88.5% in 1989.
- What is the lowest share of cereals allocated to human food recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 52.9% in 2013.
- How does Nicaragua rank for share of cereals allocated to human food?
- Nicaragua ranks 58th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of cereals allocated to human food rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is up 55.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nicaragua 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.