Insecticide use in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Insecticide use was 221 tonnes in 2023. ▼ Falling
Insecticide use in Sri Lanka, 1990–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for insecticide use in Sri Lanka is 221 tonnes, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 27.8% on the previous year and down 35.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insecticide use in Sri Lanka peaked at 580 tonnes in 2015 and was at its lowest, 195 tonnes, in 2017.
Sri Lanka ranks 110th of 211 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Insecticide use in Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 306 tonnes | — |
| 1991 | 303 tonnes | -1.0% |
| 1992 | 554 tonnes | +82.8% |
| 1993 | 471 tonnes | -15.0% |
| 1994 | 453 tonnes | -3.8% |
| 1995 | 425 tonnes | -6.2% |
| 1996 | 372 tonnes | -12.5% |
| 1997 | 351 tonnes | -5.6% |
| 1998 | 374 tonnes | +6.6% |
| 1999 | 414 tonnes | +10.7% |
| 2000 | 378 tonnes | -8.7% |
| 2001 | 379 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 380 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 381 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 382 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 383 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 384 tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 277 tonnes | -27.9% |
| 2008 | 395 tonnes | +42.6% |
| 2009 | 357 tonnes | -9.6% |
| 2010 | 439 tonnes | +23.0% |
| 2011 | 394 tonnes | -10.3% |
| 2012 | 249 tonnes | -36.8% |
| 2013 | 344 tonnes | +38.2% |
| 2014 | 212 tonnes | -38.4% |
| 2015 | 580 tonnes | +173.6% |
| 2016 | 295 tonnes | -49.1% |
| 2017 | 195 tonnes | -33.9% |
| 2018 | 256 tonnes | +31.3% |
| 2019 | 229 tonnes | -10.5% |
| 2020 | 368 tonnes | +60.7% |
| 2021 | 398 tonnes | +8.2% |
| 2022 | 306 tonnes | -23.1% |
| 2023 | 221 tonnes | -27.8% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 221 tonnes is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 339.5 tonnes, 65% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 221 tonnes is below the median for South Asia, which is 307 tonnes, 72% of the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Insecticide use in Sri Lanka 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | +173.6% | 212 tonnes | 580 tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 402.3 tonnes | 303 tonnes | 554 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 369.6 tonnes | 277 tonnes | 395 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 319.3 tonnes | 195 tonnes | 580 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 323.25 tonnes | 221 tonnes | 398 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More reference data data for Sri Lanka
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1608 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.316 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1784 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.539 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1604 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9713 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insecticide use in Sri Lanka?
- Insecticide use in Sri Lanka was 221 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 Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 580 tonnes in 2015.
- What is the lowest insecticide use recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 195 tonnes in 2017.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for insecticide use?
- Sri Lanka ranks 110th out of 211 countries with data for 2023.
- Is insecticide use rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is down 35.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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.