Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland
Iceland: Area of permanent meadows and pastures was 1.52 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.52 million hectares
Change on year
down 13.4%
World rank
94th
of 209 countries
All-time high
2.00 million hectares
in 1961
All-time low
1.52 million hectares
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
In 2023, area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland stood at 1.52 million hectares. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
That represents a change of down 13.4% on the previous year and down 13.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland peaked at 2.00 million hectares in 1961 and was at its lowest, 1.52 million hectares, in 2023.
That places Iceland 94th 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 Iceland, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.00 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 2.00 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 1.88 million hectares | -6.0% |
| 1971 | 1.87 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1972 | 1.86 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1973 | 1.85 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 1.83 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1975 | 1.82 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1976 | 1.81 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1977 | 1.80 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 1.79 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 1.78 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1980 | 1.77 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1981 | 1.77 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 1.77 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 1.77 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 1.77 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 1.77 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 1.76 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 1.76 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 1.75 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 1.75 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 1.75 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 1.75 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 1.52 million hectares | -13.4% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 1.52 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 378,820 hectares, 4.0× the median. (71 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 1.52 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 968,416 hectares, 1.6× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.00 million hectares | 2.00 million hectares | 2.00 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.83 million hectares | 1.78 million hectares | 1.88 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.77 million hectares | 1.76 million hectares | 1.77 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.76 million hectares | 1.76 million hectares | 1.76 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.75 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 1.76 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.75 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.69 million hectares | 1.52 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More reference data data for Iceland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0288 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.0708 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0001 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.1854 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0964 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.062 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2576 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.7664 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0005 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland?
- Area of permanent meadows and pastures in Iceland was 1.52 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 Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.00 million hectares in 1961.
- What is the lowest area of permanent meadows and pastures recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.52 million hectares in 2023.
- How does Iceland rank for area of permanent meadows and pastures?
- Iceland ranks 94th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is area of permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iceland 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.