Australia vs South Africa: Sugar cane production
Australia
29.86 million tonnes
in 2024
South Africa
16.74 million tonnes
in 2024
Australia rank
10th
South Africa rank
13th
Sugar cane production over time
- Australia
- South Africa
How they compare
Australia currently reports 29.86 million tonnes against 16.74 million tonnes in South Africa, a difference of 13.11 million tonnes.
That makes Australia's figure about 1.8 times South Africa's.
Across all 64 years both countries report, Australia has been ahead every year.
Australia ranks 10th and South Africa ranks 13th of 110 countries.
Australia has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 14.79 million tonnes | 11.87 million tonnes | 2.93 million tonnes | Australia |
| 1970s | 20.71 million tonnes | 17.04 million tonnes | 3.66 million tonnes | Australia |
| 1980s | 25.16 million tonnes | 18.52 million tonnes | 6.64 million tonnes | Australia |
| 1990s | 31.87 million tonnes | 18.20 million tonnes | 13.67 million tonnes | Australia |
| 2000s | 34.71 million tonnes | 20.65 million tonnes | 14.06 million tonnes | Australia |
| 2010s | 30.93 million tonnes | 17.38 million tonnes | 13.55 million tonnes | Australia |
| 2020s | 30.51 million tonnes | 17.60 million tonnes | 12.90 million tonnes | Australia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher sugar cane production, Australia or South Africa?
- Australia, at 29.86 million tonnes against 16.74 million tonnes in South Africa as of 2024.
- What is the difference in sugar cane production between Australia and South Africa?
- 13.11 million tonnes, with Australia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and South Africa?
- 64 years are reported by both, from 1961 to 2024.
- How do Australia and South Africa rank globally for sugar cane production?
- Australia ranks 10th and South Africa ranks 13th of 110 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Sugar cane production. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Sugar cane production is measured in tonnes.