Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Share of land area used for arable agriculture was 25.0% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of land area.
Analysis
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 25.0% for share of land area used for arable agriculture in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 30.4% in 1964 and was at its lowest, 23.4%, in 2001.
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 40th of 206 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year
| Year | % of land area | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 29.7% | — |
| 1962 | 29.9% | +0.9% |
| 1963 | 30.1% | +0.5% |
| 1964 | 30.4% | +1.1% |
| 1965 | 30.3% | -0.2% |
| 1966 | 30.3% | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 30.2% | -0.2% |
| 1968 | 30.1% | -0.4% |
| 1969 | 29.6% | -1.6% |
| 1970 | 29.4% | -0.9% |
| 1971 | 29.5% | +0.4% |
| 1972 | 29.5% | -0.0% |
| 1973 | 29.2% | -0.8% |
| 1974 | 29.2% | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 28.4% | -2.8% |
| 1976 | 28.5% | +0.4% |
| 1977 | 28.6% | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 28.7% | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 28.2% | -1.5% |
| 1980 | 28.6% | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 28.5% | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 28.6% | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 28.5% | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 28.6% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 28.9% | +1.0% |
| 1986 | 28.7% | -0.7% |
| 1987 | 28.7% | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 28.5% | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 27.7% | -2.7% |
| 1990 | 27.4% | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 27.1% | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 27.1% | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 25.2% | -7.1% |
| 1994 | 24.4% | -3.0% |
| 1995 | 24.5% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 25.2% | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 26.3% | +4.4% |
| 1998 | 25.8% | -1.8% |
| 1999 | 24.5% | -5.4% |
| 2000 | 24.3% | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 23.4% | -3.8% |
| 2002 | 23.9% | +2.4% |
| 2003 | 23.4% | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 24.1% | +2.8% |
| 2005 | 23.7% | -1.5% |
| 2006 | 25.2% | +6.4% |
| 2007 | 25.2% | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 24.8% | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 25.0% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 24.7% | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 25.1% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 25.7% | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 25.9% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 25.8% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 24.8% | -3.6% |
| 2016 | 24.9% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 25.1% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 25.0% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 25.2% | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 24.7% | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 24.8% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 25.0% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 25.0% | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 30.1% | 29.6% | 30.4% | 9 |
| 1970s | 28.9% | 28.2% | 29.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 28.5% | 27.7% | 28.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 25.8% | 24.4% | 27.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.3% | 23.4% | 25.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.2% | 24.7% | 25.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.9% | 24.7% | 25.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
More agriculture & rural data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 8.26 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0064 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 368.63 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.1852 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1668 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 0.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 0.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.1% (2025)
All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Share of land area used for arable agriculture in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 25.0% in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of land area used for arable agriculture recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 30.4% in 1964.
- What is the lowest share of land area used for arable agriculture recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.4% in 2001.
- How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for share of land area used for arable agriculture?
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 40th out of 206 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of land area used for arable agriculture rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of land area used for arable agriculture. 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
The share of land area used for arable agriculture, measured as a percentage of total land area. Arable land includes land defined by the FAO as land under temporary crops (double-cropped areas are counted once), temporary meadows for mowing or for pasture, land under market or kitchen gardens, and land temporarily fallow.