FAO projections of arable land in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: FAO projections of arable land was 6.09 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
6.09 million hectares
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
48th
of 224 countries
All-time high
7.47 million hectares
in 1964
All-time low
5.70 million hectares
in 2001
Years of data
63
1961–2023
FAO projections of arable land in United Kingdom, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 6.09 million hectares for fao projections of arable land in 2023.
The figure is down 3.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fao projections of arable land in United Kingdom peaked at 7.47 million hectares in 1964 and was at its lowest, 5.70 million hectares, in 2001.
United Kingdom ranks 48th of 224 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
FAO projections of arable land in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 7.29 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 7.35 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 1963 | 7.40 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1964 | 7.47 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 1965 | 7.45 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1966 | 7.43 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1967 | 7.42 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1968 | 7.38 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1969 | 7.26 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 1970 | 7.20 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1971 | 7.23 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1972 | 7.22 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1973 | 7.16 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1974 | 7.15 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1975 | 6.95 million hectares | -2.8% |
| 1976 | 6.97 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1977 | 7.00 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 7.01 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 6.91 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 1980 | 7.00 million hectares | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 6.98 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1982 | 6.99 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 6.97 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 6.99 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 7.06 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 1986 | 7.01 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1987 | 7.00 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1988 | 6.95 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1989 | 6.77 million hectares | -2.6% |
| 1990 | 6.69 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 6.63 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 6.62 million hectares | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 6.15 million hectares | -7.0% |
| 1994 | 5.97 million hectares | -2.9% |
| 1995 | 5.99 million hectares | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 6.15 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 6.42 million hectares | +4.4% |
| 1998 | 6.31 million hectares | -1.9% |
| 1999 | 5.97 million hectares | -5.4% |
| 2000 | 5.93 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 5.70 million hectares | -3.8% |
| 2002 | 5.84 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 2003 | 5.71 million hectares | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 5.87 million hectares | +2.8% |
| 2005 | 5.78 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 6.14 million hectares | +6.3% |
| 2007 | 6.13 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 6.05 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 6.09 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 6.02 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 6.11 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 6.26 million hectares | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 6.31 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 6.28 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 6.06 million hectares | -3.5% |
| 2016 | 6.07 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 6.13 million hectares | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 6.08 million hectares | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 6.13 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 6.02 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 6.06 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 6.08 million hectares | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 6.09 million hectares | +0.0% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 6.09 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 303,040 hectares, 20.1× the median. (78 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 6.09 million hectares is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.39 million hectares, 4.4× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 7.38 million hectares | 7.26 million hectares | 7.47 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 7.08 million hectares | 6.91 million hectares | 7.23 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.97 million hectares | 6.77 million hectares | 7.06 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.29 million hectares | 5.97 million hectares | 6.69 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.92 million hectares | 5.70 million hectares | 6.14 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.14 million hectares | 6.02 million hectares | 6.31 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.06 million hectares | 6.02 million hectares | 6.09 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.97 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 10.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 15.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 59.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 5.48 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fao projections of arable land in United Kingdom?
- Fao projections of arable land in United Kingdom was 6.09 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 fao projections of arable land recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 7.47 million hectares in 1964.
- What is the lowest fao projections of arable land recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.70 million hectares in 2001.
- How does United Kingdom rank for fao projections of arable land?
- United Kingdom ranks 48th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is fao projections of arable land rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom 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 FAO projections of arable land. 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
Land allocated to arable production or permanent crops, measured in hectares. Values from 2030 onwards are FAO's 2018 projections under three different scenarios.