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Harvested Area and Yield for 4 Crops (1995-2005)

Croplands cover ~15 million km2 of the planet and provide the bulk of the food and fiber essential to human well-being. Most global land cover data sets from satellites group croplands into just a few categories, thereby excluding information that is critical for answering key questions ranging from biodiversity conservation to food security to biogeochemical cycling. Information about agricultural land use practices like crop selection, yield, and fertilizer use is even more limited. Here we present land use data sets created by combining national, state, and county level census statistics with a global data set of croplands on a 5 minute by 5 minute (~10 km by 10 km) latitude/longitude grid. The resulting land use data sets depict five-year averages for 1995, 2000, and 2005 area (harvested) and yield of wheat, maize, rice, and soybean.

Citation:

Ray, D. K., Ramankutty, N., Mueller, N. D., West, P. C., & Foley, J. a. (2012). Recent patterns of crop yield growth and stagnation. Nature Communications, 3, 1293. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms2296

Based on previous research:
Monfreda, C., N. Ramankutty, and J. A. Foley (2008), Farming the planet: 2. Geographic distribution of crop areas, yields, physiological types, and net primary production in the year 2000, Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 22, GB1022, doi:10.1029/2007GB002947.

Contact:

Direct questions by email to earthstat.data@gmail.com

For additional information regarding publications and research, visit http://gli.environment.umn.edu/ or http://www.ramankuttylab.com

Data Products:

The following data products are included for each of 4 crops:

  • Harvested Area: fractional
    • Crop-specific data representing the average fractional proportion of a grid cell that was harvested in a crop during the 1997-2003 era.
  • Yield : tons per hectare
    • Crop-specific data representing the average yield for a crop in tons per hectare during the 1997-2003 era

Resolution:

  • Spatial: Five minute by five minute resolution (~10km x 10km at equator)
  • Temporal: Five year averages for 1995 (1993-1997), 2000 (1998-2002), and 2005 (2003-2007).

Map Projection:

  • Data presented as five-arc-minute, 4320 x 2160 cell grid
  • Spatial Reference: GCS_WGS_1984
  • Datum: D_WGS_1984
  • Cell size: 0.083333 degrees
  • Layer extent:
    • Top : 90
    • Left: -180
    • Right: 180
    • Bottom: -90

License:

Data may be freely downloaded for research, study, or teaching, but must be cited appropriately.  Re-release of the data, or incorporation of the data into a commercial product, is allowed only with explicit permission.  If you would like to request permission to use EarthStat data for another purpose, please contact us at earthstat.data@gmail.com.

Agricultural Inventory Data:

We collected maize, rice, wheat, and soybean area harvested and production numbers from ~13,500 fixed political units to build our national and subnational information of crop yields (yield is the ratio of production and harvested area) at each of these political units. What we describe here is the data used in this specific study, approximately 600,000 census statistics per crop. Out of the 226 political units (nations) for which the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) provides national-level data, we collected data at the next administration level for 51 countries, and also at the third administration level for 17 countries. These 51 countries account for ~79% maize, ~80% rice, ~70% wheat, and ~97% soybean harvested areas globally, between 2004-200860. More importantly, these 51 countries account for ~91% maize, ~83% rice, ~78% wheat and ~99% of soybean total global production during the same years. Where sub-national data are available, the frequency of reporting varies among countries. Our largest gap of missing subnational information is from the former Soviet Republics.

Frequently Asked Questions and Tips:

  • Why does the harvested area fraction exceed 1 (100% or more of a cell in a single crop)?
    • A grid cell may be more than 1.0 or 100% due to multiple harvests per year. For example, if a crop is produced in 60% of the grid cell’s area, and harvested twice in one year, that cell would have a value of 1.2, or 120%.
  • These data sets are not intended to be interpreted at the individual grid cell level. Although they are presented at five-minute resolution, the best way to use these maps is to compare counties, states, regions, countries, or continents.

See included Supplemental Information in download package for more in-depth information on data quality and methods:

 

Country Source (see SI) Number of political units Time frame (number of years available from 1989 to 2008) Number of census reported statistics collected per crop
1 Argentina [49], [50] 499 municipios + 22 states + 1 national level 20 municipios + 20 states + 20 national 19960 municipios + 880 states + 40 national
2 Australia [49], [51], [52], [53] 59 statistical divisions + 9 states + national level 10 statistical divisions + 20 states + 20 national 1180 statistical divisions + 360 states + 40 national
3 Austria [49], [54] 9 states + 3 regions + national level 20 states + 20 regions + 20 national 360 states + 120 regions + 40 national
4 Belgium [49], [54] 11 states + national level (prior to 2000 we used Belgium-Luxembourg) 20 states + 20 national 440 states + 40 national
5 Bolivia [49], [55] 9 regions, + national level 11 regions + 20 national 198 regions + 40 national
6 Brazil [49], [56], [57] 5510 municipios + 27 states + national level 20 municipios + 20 states + 20 national 220400 municipios + 1080 states + 40 national
7 Bulgaria [49], [54] 28 provinces + national level 1 provinces + 20 national 56 provinces + 40 national
8 Canada [49], [58] 13 (provinces & territories) + national 20 (provinces & territories) + 20 national 520 (provinces & territories) + 40 national
9 Chile [49], [59] 13 regions + national 20 regions + 20 national 520 regions + 40 national
10 China [49], [60] 30 provinces/autonomous regions/municipalities + national 20 provinces + 20 national 1200 provinces + 40 national
11 Colombia [49], [61] 33 departments + national level 14 departments + 20 national 924 departments + 40 national
12 Czech Republic [49], [54], [62] 8 states + national level 14 states + 20 national 224 states + 40 national
13 Ecuador [49], [63] 22 states + national level 9 states + 20 national 396 states + 40 national
14 Finland [49], [54] 6 counties + 2 states + national level 17 counties + 17 states + 20 national 204 (counties) + 68 (states) + 40 national
15 France [49], [54] 22 counties + 8 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 880 (counties) + 320 (states) + 40 national
16 Germany [49], [54] 16 states + national 20 states + 20 national 640 states + 40 national
17 Greece [49], [54] 13 counties + 4 states + national 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 520 (counties) + 160 (states) + 40 national
18 Hungary [49], [54] 7 states + national 14 states + 20 national 196 states + 40 national
19 India [49], [64], [65], [66] 552 districts + 32 states + national 20 districts + 20 states + 20 national 22080 districts + 1280 states + 40 national
20 Indonesia [49], [67] 26 states + national level 16 states + 20 national 832 states + 40 national
21 Iran [49], [68] 24 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 960 states + 40 national
22 Ireland [49], [54] 2 states + national level 19 states + 20 national 76 states + 40 national
23 Italy [49], [54] 20 counties + 12 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 800 counties + 480 states + 40 national
24 Japan [49], [69] 9 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 360 states + 40 national
25 South Korea [49], [70] 14 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 560 states + 40 national
26 Mexico [49], [71] 2402 counties + 32 states + national level 6 counties + 20 states + 20 national 28824 counties + 1280 states + 40 national
27 Mongolia [49], [72] 20 states + national level 13 states + 20 national 520 states + 40 national
28 Nepal [49], [69] 14 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 560 states + 40 national
29 Netherlands [49], [54] 12 counties + 4 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 480 counties + 160 states + 40 national
30 Nigeria [49], [73] 31 states + national level 12 states + 20 national 744 states + 40 national
31 Norway [49], [74] 18 states + national level 16 states + 20 national 576 states + 40 national
32 Pakistan [49], [69] 5 states + national level 19 states + 20 national 190 states + 40 national
33 Paraguay [49], [75] 19 states + national level 19 states + 20 national 722 states + 40 national
34 Peru [49], [76] 26 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 1040 states + 40 national
35 Philippines [49], [69] 11 states + national level 19 states + 20 national 418 states + 40 national
36 Poland [49], [54] 16 states + national level 13 states + 20 national 416 states + 40 national
37 Portugal [49], [54] 7 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 280 states + 40 national
38 Romania [49], [54] 8 states + national level 14 states + 20 national 224 states + 40 national
39 Saudi Arabia [49], [77] 14 states + national level 20 states + 20 national 560 states + 40 national
40 Slovakia [49], [54] 4 states + national level 14 states + 20 national 112 states + 40 national
41 South Africa [49], [78] 11 states + national level 4 states + 20 national 88 states + 40 national
42 Spain [49], [54] 16 counties + 6 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 640 counties + 240 states + 40 national
43 Sri Lanka [49], [79] 24 counties + 9 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 960 counties + 360 states + 40 national
44 Sweden [49], [54] 8 states + national level 20 states + 20 – national 320 states + 40 national
45 Thailand [49], [80] 72 counties + 5 states + national 14 counties + 14 states + 20 – national 2016 counties + 140 states + 40 national
46 Turkey [49], [81] 73 states + national level 18 states + 20 national 2628 states + 40 national
47 United Kingdom [49], [54] 12 counties + 4 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 480 counties + 160 states + 40 national
48 United States [49], [82] 3078 counties + 50 states + national level 20 counties + 20 states + 20 national 123120 counties + 2000 states + 40 national
49 Uruguay [49], [83] 19 states + national level 2 states + 20 national 76 states + 40 national
50 Venezuela [49], [84] 24 states + national level 1 states + 20 national 48 states + 40 national
51 Vietnam [49], [85] 61 counties + 8 states + national level 14 counties + 14 states + 20 national 1708 counties + 224 states + 40 national
Countries with incomplete national data
Former Soviet Republics [49], [86] 1 national level 19 – national (1989-1990; 1992-2008) 38 national
Eritrea, Ethiopia [49] 1 national level 20 national 40 national
Countries with complete National data for all years (1989-2008)
Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, American Samoa, Andorra, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Ivory Coast, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cyprus, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Faeroe Islands, Falkland Islands, Fiji Islands, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Iceland, Iraq, Isle of Man, Israel including Palestine, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Micronesia (Federated States of), Monaco, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Is, Oman, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paracel Islands, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre & Miquelon, Saint Vincent/Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Spratly Islands, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tanzania, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turks and Caicos Is, Tuvalu, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, US Virgin Islands, Vanuatu, Wake Island, Wallis and Futuna Is, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Countries not analysed
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovenia, Taiwan