Mapping the World’s Food Production

In a world of nearly 8 billion people, food security is one of the greatest challenges we face.

Roughly 700 million people suffer from hunger every day, lacking access to staple foods like maize, rice, and wheat. While many people often take the availability of food for granted, it’s worth taking a moment to identify and acknowledge where the food we consume comes from.

From staple crops to exotic fruit, this interactive map from Our World in Data shows global food production using data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

A Closer Look at Staple Food Production

Which countries produce the foods that we eat every day? Here’s a look at the top producers of three of the world’s most important staple foods.

Maize (Corn)

Corn or maize is the most widely-grown crop in the Americas, with uses in various industries. While the crop is native to Central America, it is grown in all parts of the world.

The U.S. is by far the largest corn producer and exporter, with large amounts of corn coming from the states of Iowa, Illinois, and Nebraska. Over 90 million acres of land is used to grow corn, an area nearly the size of Montana.

The U.S. is also the largest consumer of corn, followed by China, the second-largest producer and consumer.

Wheat

First domesticated in the Middle East, wheat is a versatile crop that grows well in temperate climates. Wheat is usually milled into flour, which is then used to make bread, pasta noodles, biscuits, and other common foods.

China and India combined for nearly 31% of global wheat production in 2019, with Russia, the U.S., and France producing smaller but significant amounts of the crop.

Rice

Chinese hunter-gatherers first cultivated rice 9,400 years ago along the banks of the Yangtze River. It’s now the third most-produced crop in the world and a staple food for over 3.5 billion people, primarily in Asia.

It’s no surprise that the countries with the biggest populations are the top producers of rice. Furthermore, 9 of the top 10 rice producers are in Asia, which is a testament to how important it is for people living in the region.

While maize, wheat, and rice are important staple foods, our diets are shaped by various factors, including geography and culture. Explore the origins of the foods you like using the above interactive visualization.

How to Use the Interactive

For an overview of food production for a particular crop, select the crop using the “Food” drop-down menu, and the map will update automatically. Countries with darker shades of green produce more of the crop, and vice versa. You can hover over countries to see more in-depth production statistics.

To zoom into a specific continent, use the drop-down menu on the right where “World” is selected, and select a region of your choice.

For a historical overview of food production, click the play icon on the bottom left corner of the map, and you’ll see how the biggest producers of a crop changed over time.

By clicking the “Chart” button on the bottom left, and selecting the country (or countries) of your choice, you can see production trends over time. You can also look at the data in a tabular format by clicking on the “Table” button.

This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.