Rice production in Laos
Laos: Rice production was 3.75 million tonnes in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
3.75 million tonnes
Change on year
down 3.8%
World rank
21st
of 143 countries
All-time high
4.15 million tonnes
in 2016
All-time low
510,000 tonnes
in 1962
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Rice production in Laos, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
Laos recorded 3.75 million tonnes for rice production in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.8% on the previous year and down 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rice production in Laos peaked at 4.15 million tonnes in 2016 and was at its lowest, 510,000 tonnes, in 1962.
That places Laos 21st out of 143 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Rice production in Laos, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 540,000 tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 510,000 tonnes | -5.6% |
| 1963 | 520,000 tonnes | +2.0% |
| 1964 | 735,000 tonnes | +41.3% |
| 1965 | 740,000 tonnes | +0.7% |
| 1966 | 754,000 tonnes | +1.9% |
| 1967 | 811,000 tonnes | +7.6% |
| 1968 | 771,000 tonnes | -4.9% |
| 1969 | 895,503 tonnes | +16.1% |
| 1970 | 903,231 tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1971 | 811,284 tonnes | -10.2% |
| 1972 | 816,830 tonnes | +0.7% |
| 1973 | 883,510 tonnes | +8.2% |
| 1974 | 904,714 tonnes | +2.4% |
| 1975 | 910,000 tonnes | +0.6% |
| 1976 | 660,938 tonnes | -27.4% |
| 1977 | 692,700 tonnes | +4.8% |
| 1978 | 723,800 tonnes | +4.5% |
| 1979 | 866,940 tonnes | +19.8% |
| 1980 | 1.05 million tonnes | +21.5% |
| 1981 | 1.15 million tonnes | +9.6% |
| 1982 | 1.09 million tonnes | -5.4% |
| 1983 | 1.10 million tonnes | +0.8% |
| 1984 | 1.32 million tonnes | +20.0% |
| 1985 | 1.40 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 1986 | 1.45 million tonnes | +3.9% |
| 1987 | 1.21 million tonnes | -16.7% |
| 1988 | 1.00 million tonnes | -16.9% |
| 1989 | 1.40 million tonnes | +39.9% |
| 1990 | 1.49 million tonnes | +6.2% |
| 1991 | 1.22 million tonnes | -17.9% |
| 1992 | 1.50 million tonnes | +22.8% |
| 1993 | 1.25 million tonnes | -16.8% |
| 1994 | 1.58 million tonnes | +26.1% |
| 1995 | 1.42 million tonnes | -10.1% |
| 1996 | 1.41 million tonnes | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 1.66 million tonnes | +17.4% |
| 1998 | 1.67 million tonnes | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 2.10 million tonnes | +25.6% |
| 2000 | 2.20 million tonnes | +4.7% |
| 2001 | 2.33 million tonnes | +6.0% |
| 2002 | 2.42 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 2003 | 2.38 million tonnes | -1.7% |
| 2004 | 2.53 million tonnes | +6.5% |
| 2005 | 2.57 million tonnes | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 2.66 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 2007 | 2.71 million tonnes | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 2.97 million tonnes | +9.6% |
| 2009 | 3.14 million tonnes | +5.9% |
| 2010 | 3.07 million tonnes | -2.4% |
| 2011 | 3.07 million tonnes | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 3.49 million tonnes | +13.8% |
| 2013 | 3.41 million tonnes | -2.1% |
| 2014 | 4.00 million tonnes | +17.2% |
| 2015 | 4.10 million tonnes | +2.5% |
| 2016 | 4.15 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 4.04 million tonnes | -2.6% |
| 2018 | 3.58 million tonnes | -11.3% |
| 2019 | 3.53 million tonnes | -1.4% |
| 2020 | 3.52 million tonnes | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 3.66 million tonnes | +4.0% |
| 2022 | 3.78 million tonnes | +3.3% |
| 2023 | 3.90 million tonnes | +3.1% |
| 2024 | 3.75 million tonnes | -3.8% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 3.75 million tonnes is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 407,632 tonnes, 9.2× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Laos's 3.75 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.00 million tonnes, 1.3× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Rice production in Laos 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | +41.3% | 520,000 tonnes | 735,000 tonnes |
| 1989 | +39.9% | 1.00 million tonnes | 1.40 million tonnes |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 697,389 tonnes | 510,000 tonnes | 895,503 tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 817,395 tonnes | 660,938 tonnes | 910,000 tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.22 million tonnes | 1.00 million tonnes | 1.45 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.53 million tonnes | 1.22 million tonnes | 2.10 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.59 million tonnes | 2.20 million tonnes | 3.14 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.65 million tonnes | 3.07 million tonnes | 4.15 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.72 million tonnes | 3.52 million tonnes | 3.90 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More reference data data for Laos
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6615 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.913 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3021 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 3.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 12.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.64 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rice production in Laos?
- Rice production in Laos was 3.75 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 Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 4.15 million tonnes in 2016.
- What is the lowest rice production recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 510,000 tonnes in 1962.
- How does Laos rank for rice production?
- Laos ranks 21st out of 143 countries with data for 2024.
- Is rice production rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Laos 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.