Pesticide use in Ireland

Ireland: Pesticide use was 2,274 tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2,274 tonnes
Change on year
down 16.4%
Rank
83rd
of 211 regions
All-time high
3,692 tonnes
in 2011
All-time low
1,577 tonnes
in 1996
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Pesticide use in Ireland, 1990–2023

01.0k2.0k3.0k4.0k1990200620231990: 2.0k tonnes1991: 2.0k tonnes1992: 2.0k tonnes1993: 2.0k tonnes1994: 2.0k tonnes1995: 2.2k tonnes1996: 1.6k tonnes1997: 2.2k tonnes1998: 2.3k tonnes1999: 1.9k tonnes2000: 1.9k tonnes2001: 2.3k tonnes2002: 2.6k tonnes2003: 2.7k tonnes2004: 3.0k tonnes2005: 2.6k tonnes2006: 2.8k tonnes2007: 3.1k tonnes2008: 2.8k tonnes2009: 2.3k tonnes2010: 2.5k tonnes2011: 3.7k tonnes2012: 2.8k tonnes2013: 2.9k tonnes2014: 3.4k tonnes2015: 3.5k tonnes2016: 3.1k tonnes2017: 2.9k tonnes2018: 2.7k tonnes2019: 3.0k tonnes2020: 2.9k tonnes2021: 3.1k tonnes2022: 2.7k tonnes2023: 2.3k tonnes

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

In 2023, pesticide use in Ireland stood at 2,274 tonnes.

That represents a change of down 16.4% on the previous year and down 21.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, pesticide use in Ireland peaked at 3,692 tonnes in 2011 and was at its lowest, 1,577 tonnes, in 1996.

That places Ireland 83rd out of 211 regions with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 2,019 tonnes 1,577 tonnes 2,257 tonnes 10
2000s 2,612 tonnes 1,942 tonnes 3,083 tonnes 10
2010s 3,045 tonnes 2,529 tonnes 3,692 tonnes 10
2020s 2,749 tonnes 2,274 tonnes 3,091 tonnes 4

Countries ranked near Ireland

  1. 80 Congo 2,854 tonnes compare
  2. 81 El Salvador 2,787 tonnes compare
  3. 82 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2,723 tonnes compare
  4. 84 Serbia 2,249 tonnes compare
  5. 85 Zimbabwe 2,185 tonnes compare
  6. 86 Suriname 2,149 tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 211 places →

More reference data data for Ireland

All data for Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is pesticide use in Ireland?
Pesticide use in Ireland was 2,274 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 Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 3,692 tonnes in 2011.
What is the lowest pesticide use recorded in Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 1,577 tonnes in 1996.
How does Ireland rank for pesticide use?
Ireland ranks 83rd out of 211 regions with data for 2023.
Is pesticide use rising or falling in Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is down 21.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Ireland 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.