Pesticide use in Greenland
Greenland: Pesticide use was 9 tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
9 tonnes
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
196th
of 211 countries
All-time high
17 tonnes
in 2005
All-time low
3 tonnes
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Pesticide use in Greenland, 1990–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Greenland recorded 9 tonnes for pesticide use in 2023.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, pesticide use in Greenland peaked at 17 tonnes in 2005 and was at its lowest, 3 tonnes, in 1990.
That places Greenland 196th out of 211 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Pesticide use in Greenland, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 3 tonnes | — |
| 1991 | 3 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 4 tonnes | +33.3% |
| 1993 | 4 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 4 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 5 tonnes | +25.0% |
| 1996 | 5 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 5 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 6 tonnes | +20.0% |
| 1999 | 5 tonnes | -16.7% |
| 2000 | 3 tonnes | -40.0% |
| 2001 | 4 tonnes | +33.3% |
| 2002 | 7 tonnes | +75.0% |
| 2003 | 13 tonnes | +85.7% |
| 2004 | 16 tonnes | +23.1% |
| 2005 | 17 tonnes | +6.2% |
| 2006 | 14 tonnes | -17.6% |
| 2007 | 11 tonnes | -21.4% |
| 2008 | 9 tonnes | -18.2% |
| 2009 | 7 tonnes | -22.2% |
| 2010 | 8 tonnes | +14.3% |
| 2011 | 10 tonnes | +25.0% |
| 2012 | 12 tonnes | +20.0% |
| 2013 | 9 tonnes | -25.0% |
| 2014 | 8 tonnes | -11.1% |
| 2015 | 5 tonnes | -37.5% |
| 2016 | 7 tonnes | +40.0% |
| 2017 | 7 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 10 tonnes | +42.9% |
| 2019 | 9 tonnes | -10.0% |
| 2020 | 9 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 9 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 9 tonnes | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 9 tonnes | +0.0% |
Greenland compared with similar countries
- Greenland's 9 tonnes is below the median for high income countries, which is 1,224 tonnes, 1% of the median. (73 countries reporting)
- Greenland's 9 tonnes is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2,830 tonnes, 0% of the median. (50 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.4 tonnes | 3 tonnes | 6 tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 10.1 tonnes | 3 tonnes | 17 tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.5 tonnes | 5 tonnes | 12 tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 9 tonnes | 9 tonnes | 9 tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near Greenland
- 194 Micronesia (country) 12 tonnes compare
- 195 Wallis and Futuna 10 tonnes compare
- 196 Guam 9 tonnes compare
- 198 Nauru 7 tonnes compare
- 199 Cape Verde 5 tonnes compare
More reference data data for Greenland
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0.2128 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0004 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0986 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 0.1141 (2019)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 0.0041 (2019)
- Official exchange rate, LCU per USD, period average 6.82 (2017)
- Annual precipitation, annual growth rate 7.26 % change on previous year (2025)
- Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture, per unit of GDP 0 metric tons per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture, per capita 0.0005 metric tons per person (2024)
- Seafood production: wild fish catch vs. aquaculture 30 metric tons (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pesticide use in Greenland?
- Pesticide use in Greenland was 9 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 pesticide use recorded in Greenland?
- The highest recorded value was 17 tonnes in 2005.
- What is the lowest pesticide use recorded in Greenland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3 tonnes in 1990.
- How does Greenland rank for pesticide use?
- Greenland ranks 196th out of 211 countries with data for 2023.
- Is pesticide use rising or falling in Greenland?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Greenland 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 Pesticide 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
Total pesticide use measured in tonnes of pesticide consumption per year.