Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany
Germany: Area of permanent meadows and pastures was 4.70 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
4.70 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.6%
World rank
69th
of 209 countries
All-time high
6.89 million hectares
in 1966
All-time low
4.62 million hectares
in 2013
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany is 4.70 million hectares, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.6% on the previous year and up 1.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany peaked at 6.89 million hectares in 1966 and was at its lowest, 4.62 million hectares, in 2013.
That places Germany 69th out of 209 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.
Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 6.65 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 6.70 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1963 | 6.74 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 6.80 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1965 | 6.89 million hectares | +1.4% |
| 1966 | 6.89 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 6.89 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 6.78 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1969 | 6.78 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1970 | 6.63 million hectares | -2.1% |
| 1971 | 6.55 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1972 | 6.50 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1973 | 6.45 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1974 | 6.34 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1975 | 6.28 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1976 | 6.20 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 1977 | 6.15 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1978 | 6.08 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 1979 | 6.04 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1980 | 5.99 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1981 | 5.96 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1982 | 5.93 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1983 | 5.88 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1984 | 5.86 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 1985 | 5.82 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 5.79 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 5.74 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 5.71 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1989 | 5.67 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 5.62 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 5.33 million hectares | -5.1% |
| 1992 | 5.24 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1993 | 5.25 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 5.27 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 5.28 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1996 | 5.27 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 5.27 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 5.27 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1999 | 5.11 million hectares | -2.9% |
| 2000 | 5.05 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 5.01 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 4.97 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 2003 | 4.97 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2004 | 4.91 million hectares | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 4.93 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 4.88 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 4.88 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 4.79 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2009 | 4.74 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 4.66 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 4.64 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 4.63 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 4.62 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 4.65 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 4.68 million hectares | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 4.69 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 4.71 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 4.71 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 4.75 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 4.73 million hectares | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 4.73 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 4.73 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 4.70 million hectares | -0.6% |
Germany compared with similar countries
- Germany's 4.70 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 378,820 hectares, 12.4× the median. (71 countries reporting)
- Germany's 4.70 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 968,416 hectares, 4.9× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.79 million hectares | 6.65 million hectares | 6.89 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 6.32 million hectares | 6.04 million hectares | 6.63 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.83 million hectares | 5.67 million hectares | 5.99 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.29 million hectares | 5.11 million hectares | 5.62 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.91 million hectares | 4.74 million hectares | 5.05 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.68 million hectares | 4.62 million hectares | 4.75 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.72 million hectares | 4.70 million hectares | 4.73 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More reference data data for Germany
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.6 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 16.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 15.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 9.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.87 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 80.38 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 10.56 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany?
- Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Germany was 4.70 million hectares 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 area of permanent meadows and pastures recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 6.89 million hectares in 1966.
- What is the lowest area of permanent meadows and pastures recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.62 million hectares in 2013.
- How does Germany rank for area of permanent meadows and pastures?
- Germany ranks 69th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is area of permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Germany 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 Area of permanent meadows and pastures. 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
This is the land used for livestock grazing. The total land use for livestock farming is higher as it additionally requires cropland used to grow animal feed.