Insecticide use in South Africa
South Africa: Insecticide use was 9,639 tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
9,639 tonnes
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
14th
of 211 countries
All-time high
9,772 tonnes
in 2021
All-time low
4,069 tonnes
in 1994
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Insecticide use in South Africa, 1990–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 9,639 tonnes for insecticide use in 2023.
The figure is down 0.5% on the previous year and up 15.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insecticide use in South Africa peaked at 9,772 tonnes in 2021 and was at its lowest, 4,069 tonnes, in 1994.
South Africa ranks 14th of 211 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Insecticide use in South Africa, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 4,285 tonnes | — |
| 1991 | 4,285 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 4,266 tonnes | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 4,213 tonnes | -1.2% |
| 1994 | 4,069 tonnes | -3.4% |
| 1995 | 4,231 tonnes | +4.0% |
| 1996 | 4,396 tonnes | +3.9% |
| 1997 | 4,894 tonnes | +11.3% |
| 1998 | 5,683 tonnes | +16.1% |
| 1999 | 6,297 tonnes | +10.8% |
| 2000 | 6,465 tonnes | +2.7% |
| 2001 | 6,079 tonnes | -6.0% |
| 2002 | 6,295 tonnes | +3.6% |
| 2003 | 6,276 tonnes | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 6,418 tonnes | +2.3% |
| 2005 | 6,809 tonnes | +6.1% |
| 2006 | 6,585 tonnes | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 6,757 tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 7,583 tonnes | +12.2% |
| 2009 | 7,477 tonnes | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 7,704 tonnes | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 7,643 tonnes | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 7,886 tonnes | +3.2% |
| 2013 | 8,329 tonnes | +5.6% |
| 2014 | 8,802 tonnes | +5.7% |
| 2015 | 8,653 tonnes | -1.7% |
| 2016 | 8,223 tonnes | -5.0% |
| 2017 | 9,055 tonnes | +10.1% |
| 2018 | 8,948 tonnes | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 8,975 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 9,548 tonnes | +6.4% |
| 2021 | 9,772 tonnes | +2.3% |
| 2022 | 9,686 tonnes | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 9,639 tonnes | -0.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 9,639 tonnes is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 339.5 tonnes, 28.4× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 9,639 tonnes is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 286 tonnes, 33.7× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4,662 tonnes | 4,069 tonnes | 6,297 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 6,674 tonnes | 6,079 tonnes | 7,583 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 8,422 tonnes | 7,643 tonnes | 9,055 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 9,661 tonnes | 9,548 tonnes | 9,772 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insecticide use in South Africa?
- Insecticide use in South Africa was 9,639 tonnes 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 insecticide use recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 9,772 tonnes in 2021.
- What is the lowest insecticide use recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 4,069 tonnes in 1994.
- How does South Africa rank for insecticide use?
- South Africa ranks 14th out of 211 countries with data for 2023.
- Is insecticide use rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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 Insecticide use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual quantity of insecticides used in agriculture, measured as the tonnes of active ingredient per year.