Sugar cane production in South Africa
South Africa: Sugar cane production was 16.74 million tonnes in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
16.74 million tonnes
Change on year
down 6.7%
World rank
13th
of 110 countries
All-time high
23.88 million tonnes
in 2000
All-time low
8.41 million tonnes
in 1965
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Sugar cane production in South Africa, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
In 2024, sugar cane production in South Africa stood at 16.74 million tonnes.
The figure is down 6.7% on the previous year and down 5.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sugar cane production in South Africa peaked at 23.88 million tonnes in 2000 and was at its lowest, 8.41 million tonnes, in 1965.
South Africa ranks 13th of 110 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Sugar cane production in South Africa, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 8.51 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 9.75 million tonnes | +14.5% |
| 1963 | 9.94 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 1964 | 10.66 million tonnes | +7.3% |
| 1965 | 8.41 million tonnes | -21.2% |
| 1966 | 14.10 million tonnes | +67.8% |
| 1967 | 16.91 million tonnes | +19.9% |
| 1968 | 13.72 million tonnes | -18.9% |
| 1969 | 14.79 million tonnes | +7.8% |
| 1970 | 12.14 million tonnes | -17.9% |
| 1971 | 16.75 million tonnes | +37.9% |
| 1972 | 16.80 million tonnes | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 15.45 million tonnes | -8.0% |
| 1974 | 16.90 million tonnes | +9.3% |
| 1975 | 16.81 million tonnes | -0.5% |
| 1976 | 19.22 million tonnes | +14.3% |
| 1977 | 19.01 million tonnes | -1.1% |
| 1978 | 18.93 million tonnes | -0.4% |
| 1979 | 18.41 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 1980 | 14.06 million tonnes | -23.6% |
| 1981 | 19.53 million tonnes | +38.9% |
| 1982 | 19.34 million tonnes | -1.0% |
| 1983 | 13.42 million tonnes | -30.6% |
| 1984 | 22.36 million tonnes | +66.6% |
| 1985 | 18.80 million tonnes | -15.9% |
| 1986 | 18.25 million tonnes | -2.9% |
| 1987 | 21.02 million tonnes | +15.2% |
| 1988 | 19.81 million tonnes | -5.8% |
| 1989 | 18.59 million tonnes | -6.2% |
| 1990 | 18.08 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 1991 | 20.08 million tonnes | +11.0% |
| 1992 | 12.96 million tonnes | -35.5% |
| 1993 | 11.24 million tonnes | -13.2% |
| 1994 | 15.68 million tonnes | +39.5% |
| 1995 | 16.71 million tonnes | +6.6% |
| 1996 | 20.95 million tonnes | +25.4% |
| 1997 | 22.15 million tonnes | +5.7% |
| 1998 | 22.93 million tonnes | +3.5% |
| 1999 | 21.22 million tonnes | -7.4% |
| 2000 | 23.88 million tonnes | +12.5% |
| 2001 | 21.16 million tonnes | -11.4% |
| 2002 | 23.01 million tonnes | +8.8% |
| 2003 | 20.42 million tonnes | -11.3% |
| 2004 | 19.09 million tonnes | -6.5% |
| 2005 | 21.05 million tonnes | +10.3% |
| 2006 | 20.28 million tonnes | -3.7% |
| 2007 | 19.72 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 2008 | 19.26 million tonnes | -2.4% |
| 2009 | 18.66 million tonnes | -3.1% |
| 2010 | 16.02 million tonnes | -14.1% |
| 2011 | 16.80 million tonnes | +4.9% |
| 2012 | 17.28 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 2013 | 20.03 million tonnes | +15.9% |
| 2014 | 17.76 million tonnes | -11.4% |
| 2015 | 14.86 million tonnes | -16.3% |
| 2016 | 15.07 million tonnes | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 17.39 million tonnes | +15.3% |
| 2018 | 19.30 million tonnes | +11.0% |
| 2019 | 19.24 million tonnes | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 18.22 million tonnes | -5.3% |
| 2021 | 17.20 million tonnes | -5.6% |
| 2022 | 17.91 million tonnes | +4.1% |
| 2023 | 17.94 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 16.74 million tonnes | -6.7% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 16.74 million tonnes is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 6.38 million tonnes, 2.6× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 16.74 million tonnes is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 934,836 tonnes, 17.9× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 11.87 million tonnes | 8.41 million tonnes | 16.91 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 17.04 million tonnes | 12.14 million tonnes | 19.22 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 18.52 million tonnes | 13.42 million tonnes | 22.36 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 18.20 million tonnes | 11.24 million tonnes | 22.93 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 20.65 million tonnes | 18.66 million tonnes | 23.88 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 17.38 million tonnes | 14.86 million tonnes | 20.03 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.60 million tonnes | 16.74 million tonnes | 18.22 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sugar cane production in South Africa?
- Sugar cane production in South Africa was 16.74 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 sugar cane production recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 23.88 million tonnes in 2000.
- What is the lowest sugar cane production recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.41 million tonnes in 1965.
- How does South Africa rank for sugar cane production?
- South Africa ranks 13th out of 110 countries with data for 2024.
- Is sugar cane production rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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 Sugar cane 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
Sugar cane production is measured in tonnes.