The 30 Countries That Produce the Most Food in the World

The agricultural sector is one of the most important industries of any country. It not only provides a boost to the economy, but also serves as the main source of food, fabric, materials, and livelihood.

It is a diverse sector that primarily involves raising animals and cultivating plants.

In this article, we listed the top 30 countries producing the most food in the world. The list only contains primary crops and not livestock products and is based on the data of FAOSTAT.

We also included key information regarding GDP, labor force, and agricultural land from the CIA.

The country that produces the most food in the world is China, producing a total of 3,908,599,942 tons of crops.

Following China are India, Brazil, Turkey, and the United States. Here is the complete list of the top 30 countries producing the most food.

The Countries That Produce the Most Food in the World

1. China – 3,908,599,942 tons

China is the top supplier of crops in the world, producing a total of 3,908,599,942 tons based on data.

Maize is its major crop with a production of 260,876,476 tons, followed by rice for 213,610,729 tons, and vegetables for 170,350,037 tons.

Some of the country’s main agricultural products are wheat, sugar cane, potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, watermelons, sweet potatoes, apples, mushrooms, eggplants, cabbages, spinach, onions, tangerines, and garlic.

Approximately half of the country’s land use is for farming, and 27.7% of its workforce is in agriculture.

2. India – 1,232,405,083 tons

India is the second top producer of sugar cane, producing 370,500,000 tons. With 256,528,600 tons of production, oil palm fruit is the country’s second major crop.

Moreover, its agricultural production also includes vegetables, potatoes, rice, wheat, milk, maize, and fruits such as bananas, mangoes, and guavas. Approximately 47% of the workforce is in agriculture.

3. Brazil – 1,105,422,429 tons

Brazil is the third top producer of food in the world, concentrating on sugar cane as its major crop.

Based on production data, Brazil produced 757,116,855 tons of sugar cane, followed by 121,797,712 tons of soybeans, and 103,963,620 tons of maize.

Beef, milk, poultry, cassava, orange, rice, and cotton are among its other agricultural products.

About 6.6% of Brazil’s GDP comes from agriculture, where 9.4% of its labor force is employed.

4. Turkey – 1,082,109,177 tons

With a total of 1,082,109,177 tons of crop production, Turkey ranks fourth in producing the most food in the world.

Sugar beet is the most produced crop in the country, delivering 23,025,738 tons.

Turkey also grows wheat, tomatoes, barley, maize, potatoes, apples, grapes, watermelons, chilies and peppers, onions, sunflower seed, cucumbers and gherkins, seed cotton, and melons.

Its economy relies on agriculture, which makes up 6.8% of the GDP composition.

5. The United States of America – 717,565,386 tons

According to production data, the United States of America produced 360,251,560 tons of maize, making the country the number one producer of maize.

The United States also grows soybeans, sugar cane, sugar beet, wheat, milk, and potatoes.

The country produced 112,549,240 tons of soybeans and 49,690,680 tons of wheat. 44.5% of the country’s land is used in agriculture, which also accounts for 0.9% of its GDP composition.

6. Indonesia – 481,585,574 tons

Indonesia produced 481,585,574 tons of crops. These include oil palm fruit, rice, sugar cane, maize, cassava, coconuts, bananas, mangoes, mangosteens, guavas, chilies and peppers, oranges, pineapples, onions, and sweet potatoes.

Oil palm fruit is its major crop, producing 256,528,600 tons. The country’s workers heavily rely on the agricultural industry, where approximately 32% of its workforce are employed.

7. Russian Federation – 228,991,269 tons

Russia places seventh in the world for producing the most food. Mostly wheat is produced in this country, about 85,896,326 tons in total, followed by sugar beets, barley, potatoes, maize, sunflower seed, and soybeans.

The country also relies on several other crops including oats, tomatoes, peas, cabbages, rapeseed, rye, apples, onions, cucumbers and gherkins, watermelons, carrots and turnips, pumpkins, squash, and gourds.

Despite its large production, it only accounts for 4.7% of the country’s GDP.

8. Nigeria – 202,939,470 tons

The top producer of cassava is Nigeria, with a total production of 60,001,531 tons. Yams, maize, oil palm fruit, and rice are also some of the country’s major crops.

78% of the country’s land is primarily used for agricultural purposes, and agriculture accounts for only 21.2% of its GDP.

The majority of the labor force are working in the agricultural industry, which is about 70%.

9. Thailand – 195,492,486 tons

Thailand lands the ninth spot among the leading countries producing the most food, with a total of 195,492,486 tons.

Its major produce is sugar cane, which is about 74,968,070 tons.

Aside from sugar cane, the country is also a top player in cultivating several crops such as rice, cassava, oil palm fruit, maize, mangoes, mangosteens, guavas, pineapples, bananas, coconuts, oranges, and green beans.

Approximately 41.2% of the land is used for growing crops, whereas 31.8% of the labor force works in the agricultural sector.

10. Argentina – 176,205,174 tons

An agricultural export-oriented country, Argentina is one of the world’s leading producers of maize, soybeans, wheat, and sugar cane.

Argentina’s crop production focuses primarily on maize, whereas almonds, figs, spices, papayas, mangoes, and flax are some of its least produced crops.

More than half of the country’s land area is used for crop cultivation. Moreover, 10.8% of its GDP composition is all agriculture.

11. Pakistan – 155,663,650 tons

Agriculture accounts for 42.3% of employment and 24.4% of the GDP of Pakistan. Approximately 35.2% goes to farming crops including sugar cane, wheat, maize, rice, and potatoes.

According to data, 81,009,261 tons of sugar cane were cultivated. Pakistan also focuses on other smaller crops such as mangoes, onions, oranges, apples, tangerines, tomatoes, watermelons, dates, and chickpeas.

12. Mexico – 137,631,711 tons

Mexico is the 11lth largest economy in the world because of its export and import markets.

One of its important economic sectors is agriculture, which accounts for 3.6% of the GDP and 13.4% of the labor force.

More than 50% of the land is used for agriculture. However, the country is facing several economic issues, including water pollution and declining agricultural land.

13. Afghanistan – 134,867,820 tons

Despite being a landlocked country and foreign aid-dependent, Afghanistan is a top producer of food, especially wheat and vegetables.

Almost half of the workforce relies on agriculture for employment.

Moreover, its GDP composition includes 23% of agriculture. The country also cultivates several other crops including grapes, watermelons, potatoes, melons, rice, onions, maize, apples, apricots, barley, seed cotton, peaches, and nectarines.

14. Vietnam – 134,194,967 tons

It is common knowledge that Vietnam is among the world leaders in rice production. Vietnam produced 42,758,897 tons of rice alone.

Agriculture is only 15.3% of its GDP composition and 40.3% of the workforce. Agricultural land is 34.8%, which is used for several crops including sugar cane, cassava, maize, bananas, coffee, coconuts, watermelons, sweet potatoes, mangoes, mangosteens, guavas, and oranges.

15. Ukraine – 125,968,100 tons

Thanks to Ukraine’s fertile black soil, the country ranks 15th in the world for producing the most food, with a total production of 125,968,100 tons.

Ukraine’s top six crops are maize, wheat, potatoes, sunflower seeds, sugar beet, and barley.

Its farms produced other minor crops including soybeans, rapeseed, tomatoes, cabbages, pumpkins, squash and gourds, apples, onions, cucumbers and gherkins, carrots, turnips, oats, peas, and rye.

Only 5.8% of the labor force work in agriculture.

16. Bangladesh – 125,911,587 tons

Despite political instability in Bangladesh, the agricultural sector of its economy continues to grow.

Rice is its major crop, with 54,905,891 tons of production.

Although agriculture contributes only 14.2% of the GDP, 42.7% of its workforce heavily relies on it.

About 70% of agricultural land is used for other important crops such as potatoes, maize, sugar cane, vegetables, onions, mangoes, mangosteens, guavas, wheat, bananas, jute, pumpkins, squash and gourds, and garlic.

17. France – 112,273,605 tons

The economy of France is fueled by a variety of industries. Its agricultural sector only accounts for 1.7% of its GDP, despite allocating 52.7% of agricultural land.

Wheat serves as the single-most-important product of the country. Only 2.8% of the labor force are farmers of various crops such as sugar beet, maize, barley, potatoes, grapes, rapeseed, apples, sunflower seed, and triticale.

18. Canada – 109,425,505 tons

Although Canada is known for its maple syrup, wheat is the backbone of its agricultural sector.

The country produced 35,183,000 tons of wheat, followed by 19,484,700 tons of rapeseed and 13,563,400 tons of maize.

Canada is also a key player in several other crop productions such as barley, soybeans, potatoes, peas, oats, lentils, sugar beet, linseed, tomatoes, and beans.

Its agricultural sector is the lowest percentage of its GDP and labor force, which is only 1.6% and 2%, respectively.

19. The Philippines – 107,197,020 tons

The Philippines is the 19th country producing the most food worldwide, with a total production of 107,197,020 tons.

Sugar cane, rice, coconuts, maize, and bananas are its top five major crops with the highest production.

The country also produces other fruits and vegetables such as pineapples, cassava, mangoes, sweet potatoes, oil palm fruit, pumpkins, and cashew nuts.

25.4% of its workforce is in agriculture, a sector that is only 9.6% of its GDP.

20. Malaysia – 104,676,527 tons

Malaysia produced 104,676,527 tons of crops, with oil palm fruit as the highest, amounting to 96,969,316 tons.

The country is also a top producer of several crops such as rice, coconuts, vegetables, bananas, pineapples, oilseeds, tomatoes, watermelons, cucumbers, and cabbages.

Agriculture is 8.8% of its GDP composition, where approximately 11% of the labor force is working.

21. Germany – 93,832,040 tons

Germany has the most powerful economy in Europe and is also the fifth-largest in the world.

Agriculture is only a small percentage of its GDP, which is 0.7%.

It is understandable why only 1.4% of the labor force population works in agriculture. Based on the data, Germany produced 93,832,040 tons of crops, of which sugar beet is the highest with 28.618,100 tons.

22. Egypt – 92,063,283 tons

Egypt has the second-largest economy in Africa, which is powered by services and industry sectors.

Its agricultural sector accounts for 11.7% of its GDP composition.

The estimated agricultural land is at about 3.6%, a percentage that decreases due to urbanization and wind and sandblasts damage.

The country’s top produce is sugar cane, followed by sugar beet, wheat, maize, tomatoes, and potatoes.

23. Iran (the Islamic Republic of) – 75,737,055 tons

In total, Iran produced 75,737,055 tons of crops. Of the total, 15,000,000 tons were from wheat production, Iran’s main crop.

The country also cultivates other crops such as sugar cane, sugar beet, tomatoes, potatoes, barley, watermelons, oranges, apples, onions, rice, and grapes.

Moreover, approximately 16.3% of the labor force work in agriculture, which is about one-third of the population.

24. Myanmar – 73,627,076 tons

Myanmar is working to improve and increase production in its agricultural sector, which is 24.1% of its GDP composition.

Approximately 70% of the workforce is engaged in the agricultural sector.

Moreover, the country produced 73,627,076 tons of crops, which includes rice, sugar cane, vegetables, beans, maize, groundnuts, plantains, onions, sesame seed, coconuts, potatoes, chickpeas, and sugar crops.

25. Australia – 68,174,643 tons

Australia is known to be one of the top producers of dairy worldwide. In terms of crop production, another top product is sugar cane, producing 30,283,457 tons.

The other major crops of the country are wheat, barley, rapeseed, grapes, oats, potatoes, lentils, lupins, sorghum, oranges, seed cotton, and bananas.

Of the 12.568 million labor force, 3.6% are engaged in agriculture.

26. The Democratic Republic of the Congo – 59,847,585 tons

The Democratic Republic of the Congo cultivated a total of 59,847,585 tons of crops. Cassava, plantains, oil palm fruit, sugar cane, and maize are the top five major crops produced.

The country is also known to cultivate several other fruits and vegetables such as rice, roots and tubers, bananas, sweet potatoes, groundnuts, and mangoes.

Approximately 11.4% of the land is used for growing crops.

27. Colombia – 57,792,897 tons

Although Colombia is known to be the third-largest coffee producer in Latin America, their main crop is sugar cane.

Colombia produced 24,650,062 tons of sugar cane, followed by 7,172,767 tons of oil palm fruit and 3,424,119 tons of rice.

The agricultural sector accounts for 7.2% of its GDP composition and 17% of the labor force population.

Aside from its major crops, the country also grows potatoes, plantains, bananas, maize, cassava, pineapples, and avocados.

28. South Africa – 51,757,807 tons

South Africa is the fifth-largest producer of grains. In terms of overall crop production, the country cultivated 51,757,807 tons, where sugar cane, maize, potatoes, wheat, and grapes are the major crops.

Almost 80% of the land is used for the agricultural sector, a sector that only accounts for 2.8% of its GDP.

29. Ghana – 49,358,927 tons

Ghana’s main crop is cassava, producing 21,811,661 tons. In addition to contributing 18.3% of its GDP, its agricultural sector employs 44.7% of its labor force, most of whom are small landowners.

Aside from cassava, Ghana also grows yams, plantains, maize, oil palm fruit, taro, rice, cocoa beans, oranges, and pineapples.

30. Guatemala – 43,189,181 tons

Landing at the 30th spot, Guatemala produced 43,189,181 tons of crops, where sugar cane, bananas, and oil palm fruit are its top three key products. Its agricultural land is 41.2% of the total.

In addition, 13.3% of its GDP is derived from agriculture, a sector where 31.4% of the labor force are engaged in.