How does Australia rank for share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures?

Australia ranks 28th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.

Is share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in Australia?

Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Australia 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 land used for permanent meadows and pastures. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia

Name: Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia
Creator: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Australia: Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures was 43.14 percent in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)

43.14 percent

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

28th

of 209 countries

All-time high

64.04 percent

in 1968

All-time low

40.59 percent

in 2016

Years of data

1961–2023

Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia, 1961–2023

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in percent.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia is 43.14 percent, measured in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia peaked at 64.04 percent in 1968 and was at its lowest, 40.59 percent, in 2016.

That places Australia 28th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.

Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia, year by year

Annual values for Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia, 1961 to 2023.
Year	percent	Change
1961	59.87 percent	—
1962	59.99 percent	+0.2%
1963	60.37 percent	+0.6%
1964	60.58 percent	+0.3%
1965	61.02 percent	+0.7%
1966	60.93 percent	-0.1%
1967	61.2 percent	+0.4%
1968	64.04 percent	+4.6%
1969	63.92 percent	-0.2%
1970	61.8 percent	-3.3%
1971	62.81 percent	+1.6%
1972	62.82 percent	+0.0%
1973	62.85 percent	+0.0%
1974	63.18 percent	+0.5%
1975	63.24 percent	+0.1%
1976	63.28 percent	+0.1%
1977	62.03 percent	-2.0%
1978	62.39 percent	+0.6%
1979	61.93 percent	-0.7%
1980	62.18 percent	+0.4%
1981	62.11 percent	-0.1%
1982	61.33 percent	-1.3%
1983	60.45 percent	-1.4%
1984	60.48 percent	+0.0%
1985	60.61 percent	+0.2%
1986	58.28 percent	-3.8%
1987	58.74 percent	+0.8%
1988	59.06 percent	+0.5%
1989	58.5 percent	-0.9%
1990	58.22 percent	-0.5%
1991	57.98 percent	-0.4%
1992	58.52 percent	+0.9%
1993	57.64 percent	-1.5%
1994	58.72 percent	+1.9%
1995	58.1 percent	-1.1%
1996	58.03 percent	-0.1%
1997	57.42 percent	-1.1%
1998	57.57 percent	+0.3%
1999	56.03 percent	-2.7%
2000	56.19 percent	+0.3%
2001	56.13 percent	-0.1%
2002	55.05 percent	-1.9%
2003	54.14 percent	-1.7%
2004	48.01 percent	-11.3%
2005	49.92 percent	+4.0%
2006	50.08 percent	+0.3%
2007	48.79 percent	-2.6%
2008	47.5 percent	-2.6%
2009	46.44 percent	-2.2%
2010	45.61 percent	-1.8%
2011	47.39 percent	+3.9%
2012	46.22 percent	-2.5%
2013	44.28 percent	-4.2%
2014	44.53 percent	+0.6%
2015	41.23 percent	-7.4%
2016	40.59 percent	-1.6%
2017	44.3 percent	+9.1%
2018	42.59 percent	-3.9%
2019	43.1 percent	+1.2%
2020	42.22 percent	-2.0%
2021	43.14 percent	+2.2%
2022	43.14 percent	+0.0%
2023	43.14 percent	+0.0%

Australia compared with similar countries

Australia's 43.14 percent is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.66 percent, 4.5× the median. (71 countries reporting)
Australia's 43.14 percent is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.93 percent, 14.7× the median. (31 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	61.32 percent	59.87 percent	64.04 percent	9
1970s	62.63 percent	61.8 percent	63.28 percent	10
1980s	60.17 percent	58.28 percent	62.18 percent	10
1990s	57.82 percent	56.03 percent	58.72 percent	10
2000s	51.23 percent	46.44 percent	56.19 percent	10
2010s	43.98 percent	40.59 percent	47.39 percent	10
2020s	42.91 percent	42.22 percent	43.14 percent	4

Countries ranked near Australia

25 Mozambique 45.1 percent compare
26 Syria 44.46 percent compare
27 Guinea 43.55 percent compare
29 Paraguay 42.38 percent compare
30 China 41.84 percent compare
31 Yemen 41.67 percent compare

See the full ranking of 210 places →

More reference data data for Australia

Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.21 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 28.02 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 38.41 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.55 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 38.41 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.07 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.14 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 118.71 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 170.29 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 13.9 (2050)

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia?: Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia was 43.14 percent 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 land used for permanent meadows and pastures recorded in Australia?: The highest recorded value was 64.04 percent in 1968.
What is the lowest share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures recorded in Australia?: The lowest recorded value was 40.59 percent in 2016.
How does Australia rank for share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures?: Australia ranks 28th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in Australia?: Over the last ten years it is down 2.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Australia 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 land used for permanent meadows and pastures. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/area-meadows-and-pastures/australia/

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About this data

Indicator: Share of land used for permanent meadows and pastures
Unit: percent
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 210 places, 12,094 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

Permanent meadows and pastures are areas used permanently (five years or more) for herbaceous forage crops, either cultivated or growing wild (wild prairie or grazing land).