Pesticide use in India

India: Pesticide use was 40,094 tonnes in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
40,094 tonnes
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
17th
of 211 countries
All-time high
75,000 tonnes
in 1990
All-time low
14,485 tonnes
in 2008
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Pesticide use in India, 1990–2023

20.0k40.0k60.0k80.0k1990200620231990: 75.0k tonnes1991: 72.1k tonnes1992: 70.8k tonnes1993: 66.1k tonnes1994: 61.4k tonnes1995: 61.3k tonnes1996: 56.1k tonnes1997: 52.3k tonnes1998: 49.2k tonnes1999: 46.2k tonnes2000: 45.0k tonnes2001: 43.7k tonnes2002: 42.5k tonnes2003: 41.2k tonnes2004: 35.1k tonnes2005: 35.3k tonnes2006: 37.4k tonnes2007: 27.4k tonnes2008: 14.5k tonnes2009: 28.7k tonnes2010: 40.1k tonnes2011: 40.1k tonnes2012: 40.1k tonnes2013: 40.1k tonnes2014: 40.1k tonnes2015: 40.1k tonnes2016: 40.1k tonnes2017: 40.1k tonnes2018: 40.1k tonnes2019: 40.1k tonnes2020: 40.1k tonnes2021: 40.1k tonnes2022: 40.1k tonnes2023: 40.1k tonnes

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 pesticide use in India is 40,094 tonnes, measured in 2023.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, pesticide use in India peaked at 75,000 tonnes in 1990 and was at its lowest, 14,485 tonnes, in 2008.

That places India 17th out of 211 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 61,036 tonnes 46,195 tonnes 75,000 tonnes 10
2000s 35,090 tonnes 14,485 tonnes 44,958 tonnes 10
2010s 40,094 tonnes 40,094 tonnes 40,094 tonnes 10
2020s 40,094 tonnes 40,094 tonnes 40,094 tonnes 4

Countries ranked near India

  1. 14 Japan 45,574 tonnes compare
  2. 15 South Africa 42,041 tonnes compare
  3. 16 Germany 40,494 tonnes compare
  4. 18 Italy 39,571 tonnes compare
  5. 19 Philippines 37,660 tonnes compare
  6. 20 Mexico 37,298 tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 211 places →

More reference data data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is pesticide use in India?
Pesticide use in India was 40,094 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 India?
The highest recorded value was 75,000 tonnes in 1990.
What is the lowest pesticide use recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 14,485 tonnes in 2008.
How does India rank for pesticide use?
India ranks 17th out of 211 countries with data for 2023.
Is pesticide use rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this India 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

Indicator
Pesticide use
Unit
tonnes
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
211 places, 7,015 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

Total pesticide use measured in tonnes of pesticide consumption per year.