Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland
Iceland: Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture was 54,789 metric tons in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland, 1960–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in metric tons.
Analysis
In 2024, seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland stood at 54,789 metric tons. That is the highest value across all 65 years on record.
That represents a change of up 10.5% on the previous year and up 549.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland peaked at 54,789 metric tons in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0 metric tons, in 1960.
Iceland ranks 48th of 215 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland, year by year
| Year | metric tons | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1961 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1962 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1963 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1964 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1965 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1966 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1967 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1968 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1969 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1970 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1971 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1972 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1973 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1974 | 0 metric tons | — |
| 1975 | 2 metric tons | — |
| 1976 | 8 metric tons | +300.0% |
| 1977 | 15 metric tons | +87.5% |
| 1978 | 23 metric tons | +53.3% |
| 1979 | 32 metric tons | +39.1% |
| 1980 | 43 metric tons | +34.4% |
| 1981 | 59 metric tons | +37.2% |
| 1982 | 80 metric tons | +35.6% |
| 1983 | 107 metric tons | +33.8% |
| 1984 | 137 metric tons | +28.0% |
| 1985 | 103 metric tons | -24.8% |
| 1986 | 273 metric tons | +165.0% |
| 1987 | 643 metric tons | +135.5% |
| 1988 | 1,209 metric tons | +88.0% |
| 1989 | 1,677 metric tons | +38.7% |
| 1990 | 2,829 metric tons | +68.7% |
| 1991 | 2,873 metric tons | +1.6% |
| 1992 | 2,524 metric tons | -12.1% |
| 1993 | 2,917 metric tons | +15.6% |
| 1994 | 3,222 metric tons | +10.5% |
| 1995 | 3,485 metric tons | +8.2% |
| 1996 | 3,687 metric tons | +5.8% |
| 1997 | 3,663 metric tons | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 3,868 metric tons | +5.6% |
| 1999 | 3,897 metric tons | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 3,623 metric tons | -7.0% |
| 2001 | 4,371 metric tons | +20.6% |
| 2002 | 3,585 metric tons | -18.0% |
| 2003 | 6,214 metric tons | +73.3% |
| 2004 | 8,868 metric tons | +42.7% |
| 2005 | 8,256 metric tons | -6.9% |
| 2006 | 8,241 metric tons | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 4,823 metric tons | -41.5% |
| 2008 | 5,098 metric tons | +5.7% |
| 2009 | 5,165 metric tons | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 5,050 metric tons | -2.2% |
| 2011 | 5,308 metric tons | +5.1% |
| 2012 | 7,431 metric tons | +40.0% |
| 2013 | 7,053 metric tons | -5.1% |
| 2014 | 8,434 metric tons | +19.6% |
| 2015 | 8,383 metric tons | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 15,129 metric tons | +80.5% |
| 2017 | 20,860 metric tons | +37.9% |
| 2018 | 19,185 metric tons | -8.0% |
| 2019 | 34,055 metric tons | +77.5% |
| 2020 | 40,609 metric tons | +19.2% |
| 2021 | 53,154 metric tons | +30.9% |
| 2022 | 51,362 metric tons | -3.4% |
| 2023 | 49,602 metric tons | -3.4% |
| 2024 | 54,789 metric tons | +10.5% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 54,789 metric tons is above the median for high income countries, which is 2,445 metric tons, 22.4× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 54,789 metric tons is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10,060 metric tons, 5.4× the median. (56 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | +300.0% | 2 metric tons | 8 metric tons |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 metric tons | 0 metric tons | 0 metric tons | 10 |
| 1970s | 8 metric tons | 0 metric tons | 32 metric tons | 10 |
| 1980s | 433.1 metric tons | 43 metric tons | 1,677 metric tons | 10 |
| 1990s | 3,296 metric tons | 2,524 metric tons | 3,897 metric tons | 10 |
| 2000s | 5,824 metric tons | 3,585 metric tons | 8,868 metric tons | 10 |
| 2010s | 13,089 metric tons | 5,050 metric tons | 34,055 metric tons | 10 |
| 2020s | 49,903 metric tons | 40,609 metric tons | 54,789 metric tons | 5 |
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 seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland?
- Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture in Iceland was 54,789 metric tons in 2024, 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 seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 54,789 metric tons in 2024.
- What is the lowest seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 metric tons in 1960.
- How does Iceland rank for seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture?
- Iceland ranks 48th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 549.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iceland 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 Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Aquaculture is the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Capture fishery production is the volume of wild fish catches landed for all commercial, industrial, recreational and subsistence purposes.