North America: Cereal yield (kg per hectare)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, North America's cereal yield (kg per hectare) rose 1,124 on 2023 (from 7,290 to 8,414).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +113.14 and a typical year strayed about 466.99 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1,213 in 2013 and the biggest yearly fall was 924.84 in 1988. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 17% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Cereal yield, measured as kilograms per hectare of harvested land, includes wheat, rice, maize, barley, oats, rye, millet, sorghum, buckwheat, and mixed grains. Production data on cereals relate to crops harvested for dry grain only. Cereal crops harvested for hay or harvested green for food, feed, or silage and those used for grazing are excluded. The FAO allocates production data to the calendar year in which the bulk of the harvest took place. Most of a crop harvested near the end of a year will be used in the following year.

Limitations: Cereals production data relate to crops harvested for dry grain only. Cereal crops harvested for hay or harvested green for food, feed, or silage and those used for grazing are excluded. The FAO allocates production data to the calendar year in which the bulk of the harvest took place. Most of a crop harvested near the end of a year will be used in the following year. The data are collected by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) through annual questionnaires. The FAO tries to impose standard definitions and reporting methods, but complete consistency across countries and over time is not possible.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 64 values

Cereal yield (kg per hectare) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 2,359 (2024)
• Algeria — 1,537 (2024)
• Djibouti — 2,041 (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 7,360 (2024)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 2,725 (2024)
• Iraq — 2,651 (2024)
• Israel — 2,619 (2024)
• Jordan — 1,611 (2024)
• Kuwait — 14,196 (2024)
• Lebanon — 2,661 (2024)
• Libya — 659.7 (2024)
• Malta

More environment data for North America

• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 8.31% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 46.71% (2025)
• Rural population — 74.83 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 19.51% (2025)
• Urban population — 308.67 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 80.49% (2025)
• Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) — 5.17% (2024)
• Fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total) — 80.42% (2024)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons)

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Questions people ask

What is North America's cereal yield (kg per hectare)?

8,414 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1961?

It is up 281.86% from 2,203 in 1961 (2.15% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 8,414 in 2024 and the lowest 2,203 in 1961.

Is the latest change in cereal yield (kg per hectare) unusual for North America?

In 2024, North America's cereal yield (kg per hectare) rose 1,124 on 2023 (from 7,290 to 8,414). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +113.14 and a typical year strayed about 466.99 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), uri: https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL, publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator AG.YLD.CREL.KG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: FAO electronic files and web site, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), uri: https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/QCL, publisher: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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