Rice production in China
China: Rice production was 207.53 million tonnes in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
207.53 million tonnes
Change on year
up 0.4%
World rank
2nd
of 143 countries
All-time high
212.84 million tonnes
in 2021
All-time low
53.64 million tonnes
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Rice production in China, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
China recorded 207.53 million tonnes for rice production in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rice production in China peaked at 212.84 million tonnes in 2021 and was at its lowest, 53.64 million tonnes, in 1961.
China ranks 2nd of 143 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Rice production in China, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 53.64 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 62.98 million tonnes | +17.4% |
| 1963 | 73.77 million tonnes | +17.1% |
| 1964 | 83.00 million tonnes | +12.5% |
| 1965 | 87.72 million tonnes | +5.7% |
| 1966 | 95.39 million tonnes | +8.7% |
| 1967 | 93.69 million tonnes | -1.8% |
| 1968 | 94.53 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1969 | 95.06 million tonnes | +0.6% |
| 1970 | 109.99 million tonnes | +15.7% |
| 1971 | 115.20 million tonnes | +4.7% |
| 1972 | 113.36 million tonnes | -1.6% |
| 1973 | 121.73 million tonnes | +7.4% |
| 1974 | 123.91 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 1975 | 125.56 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 1976 | 125.81 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1977 | 128.56 million tonnes | +2.2% |
| 1978 | 136.93 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 1979 | 143.75 million tonnes | +5.0% |
| 1980 | 139.91 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 1981 | 143.96 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1982 | 161.60 million tonnes | +12.3% |
| 1983 | 168.87 million tonnes | +4.5% |
| 1984 | 178.25 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1985 | 168.57 million tonnes | -5.4% |
| 1986 | 172.22 million tonnes | +2.2% |
| 1987 | 174.26 million tonnes | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 169.11 million tonnes | -3.0% |
| 1989 | 180.13 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 1990 | 189.33 million tonnes | +5.1% |
| 1991 | 183.81 million tonnes | -2.9% |
| 1992 | 186.22 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 177.51 million tonnes | -4.7% |
| 1994 | 175.93 million tonnes | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 185.23 million tonnes | +5.3% |
| 1996 | 195.10 million tonnes | +5.3% |
| 1997 | 200.73 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1998 | 198.71 million tonnes | -1.0% |
| 1999 | 198.49 million tonnes | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 187.91 million tonnes | -5.3% |
| 2001 | 177.58 million tonnes | -5.5% |
| 2002 | 174.54 million tonnes | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 160.66 million tonnes | -8.0% |
| 2004 | 179.09 million tonnes | +11.5% |
| 2005 | 180.59 million tonnes | +0.8% |
| 2006 | 181.72 million tonnes | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 186.38 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 192.61 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 2009 | 196.20 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 197.23 million tonnes | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 202.88 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 2012 | 206.53 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 206.29 million tonnes | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 209.61 million tonnes | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 212.14 million tonnes | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 211.09 million tonnes | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 212.68 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 212.13 million tonnes | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 209.61 million tonnes | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 211.86 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 212.84 million tonnes | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 208.50 million tonnes | -2.0% |
| 2023 | 206.60 million tonnes | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 207.53 million tonnes | +0.4% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 207.53 million tonnes is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 225,923 tonnes, 918.6× the median. (37 countries reporting)
- China's 207.53 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.00 million tonnes, 69.2× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 82.20 million tonnes | 53.64 million tonnes | 95.39 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 124.48 million tonnes | 109.99 million tonnes | 143.75 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 165.69 million tonnes | 139.91 million tonnes | 180.13 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 189.11 million tonnes | 175.93 million tonnes | 200.73 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 181.73 million tonnes | 160.66 million tonnes | 196.20 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 208.02 million tonnes | 197.23 million tonnes | 212.68 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 209.47 million tonnes | 206.60 million tonnes | 212.84 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near China
More reference data data for China
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 49.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 75.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 18.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 303.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 165.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 206.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 350.74 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,480 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 102.37 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rice production in China?
- Rice production in China was 207.53 million tonnes in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest rice production recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 212.84 million tonnes in 2021.
- What is the lowest rice production recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.64 million tonnes in 1961.
- How does China rank for rice production?
- China ranks 2nd out of 143 countries with data for 2024.
- Is rice production rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China 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 Rice production. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Rice production is measured in tonnes.