Share of cereals allocated to animal feed in United States
United States: Share of cereals allocated to animal feed was 47.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of cereals allocated to animal feed in United States, 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 animal feed in United States stood at 47.8%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.0% on the previous year and up 6.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of cereals allocated to animal feed in United States peaked at 87.6% in 1972 and was at its lowest, 42.4%, in 2011.
That places United States 68th 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 animal feed in United States, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 84.8% | — |
| 1962 | 84.6% | -0.3% |
| 1963 | 83.5% | -1.2% |
| 1964 | 83.1% | -0.5% |
| 1965 | 85.2% | +2.6% |
| 1966 | 85.3% | +0.1% |
| 1967 | 85.3% | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 86.4% | +1.2% |
| 1969 | 86.4% | +0.1% |
| 1970 | 86.5% | +0.1% |
| 1971 | 87.6% | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 87.6% | +0.1% |
| 1973 | 87.1% | -0.7% |
| 1974 | 83.4% | -4.3% |
| 1975 | 84.1% | +0.8% |
| 1976 | 83.4% | -0.7% |
| 1977 | 84.3% | +1.1% |
| 1978 | 86.0% | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 85.9% | -0.1% |
| 1980 | 84.1% | -2.2% |
| 1981 | 83.9% | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 84.0% | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 82.3% | -2.1% |
| 1984 | 82.0% | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 80.9% | -1.4% |
| 1986 | 81.1% | +0.3% |
| 1987 | 80.5% | -0.7% |
| 1988 | 76.3% | -5.2% |
| 1989 | 77.6% | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 78.2% | +0.7% |
| 1991 | 77.0% | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 77.8% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 75.5% | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 76.9% | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 73.7% | -4.2% |
| 1996 | 77.0% | +4.4% |
| 1997 | 75.7% | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 75.6% | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 75.4% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 74.9% | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 74.0% | -1.2% |
| 2002 | 70.3% | -5.1% |
| 2003 | 69.8% | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 69.7% | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 67.0% | -3.8% |
| 2006 | 61.3% | -8.6% |
| 2007 | 56.9% | -7.1% |
| 2008 | 52.2% | -8.2% |
| 2009 | 47.3% | -9.4% |
| 2010 | 43.7% | -7.7% |
| 2011 | 42.4% | -2.9% |
| 2012 | 43.8% | +3.2% |
| 2013 | 44.8% | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 47.9% | +7.0% |
| 2015 | 45.8% | -4.3% |
| 2016 | 43.7% | -4.6% |
| 2017 | 43.8% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 48.6% | +10.8% |
| 2019 | 51.6% | +6.3% |
| 2020 | 46.9% | -9.2% |
| 2021 | 49.7% | +5.9% |
| 2022 | 50.8% | +2.3% |
| 2023 | 47.8% | -6.0% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 47.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 56.3%, 85% of the median. (63 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 85.0% | 83.1% | 86.4% | 9 |
| 1970s | 85.6% | 83.4% | 87.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 81.3% | 76.3% | 84.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 76.3% | 73.7% | 78.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 64.4% | 47.3% | 74.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.6% | 42.4% | 51.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 48.8% | 46.9% | 50.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States
- 65 Montenegro 48.1% compare
- 66 El Salvador 48.1% compare
- 67 North Macedonia 47.8% compare
- 69 Japan 47.7% compare
- 70 Peru 47.1% compare
- 71 Grenada 47.1% compare
More agriculture & rural data for United States
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 0.4694 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 1.22 hectares per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 11.96 % change on previous year (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0094 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 673.66 current US$ per person (2021)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.1831 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of cereals allocated to animal feed in United States?
- Share of cereals allocated to animal feed in United States was 47.8% 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 animal feed recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 87.6% in 1972.
- What is the lowest share of cereals allocated to animal feed recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.4% in 2011.
- How does United States rank for share of cereals allocated to animal feed?
- United States ranks 68th out of 192 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of cereals allocated to animal feed rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States 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 animal feed. 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
Share of cereals available for domestic use – after accounting for trade – that is allocated to animal feed, relative to the total used for human food, animal feed, and industrial purposes. This excludes cereals used for seed, processing, and losses.