Environment
Mapped: Ocean Fishing and Aquaculture Around the World
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Ocean Fishing and Aquaculture Around the World
Fish and seafood is the most popularly consumed meat in the world, the first choice in more than 56 countries.
But where do our fish come from? Are they caught by massive ocean fishing boats, or farmed in sprawling aquaculture installations?
This map from creator Perrin Remonté points out where fishing activity (marked in white) occurs, using data from automatic identification system equipment aboard more than 70,000 industrial fishing vessels between 2012–2016.
The brightest white hotspots on the map—off the coast of China, western and nordic Europe, and the Pacific Northwest—give an indication of where most of the world’s fish supply is caught.
But who are the biggest producers?
Ranked: Which Country Produces the Most Fish?
By far the country with the biggest fish production is China, which supplied nearly 86 million metric tons of fish to the world in 2021, about 40% of global supply.
Chinese fishing vessels can be found fishing as far away from home as Argentina—sometimes illegally—to keep up with demand.
Here’s a list of the biggest fish producers, ranked by total output in 2021.
Rank | Territory | Fish Production (2021, tonnes) |
---|---|---|
1 | 🇨🇳 China | 85,948,134 |
2 | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 21,813,413 |
3 | 🇮🇳 India | 14,433,205 |
4 | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | 8,289,524 |
5 | 🇵🇪 Peru | 6,726,989 |
6 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 5,487,045 |
7 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 4,731,048 |
8 | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | 4,621,228 |
9 | 🇳🇴 Norway | 4,220,624 |
10 | 🇵🇭 Philippines | 4,114,594 |
11 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 4,114,570 |
12 | 🇨🇱 Chile | 3,833,592 |
13 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 3,742,566 |
14 | 🇲🇲 Myanmar | 2,594,957 |
15 | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 2,402,021 |
16 | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 2,001,959 |
17 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 1,875,566 |
18 | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | 1,760,054 |
19 | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | 1,754,209 |
20 | 🇲🇦 Morocco | 1,434,205 |
21 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 1,410,979 |
22 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 1,258,203 |
23 | 🇮🇸 Iceland | 1,109,563 |
24 | 🇪🇸 Spain | 1,088,454 |
25 | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | 1,080,855 |
26 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 945,954 |
27 | 🇴🇲 Oman | 923,786 |
28 | 🇰🇵 North Korea | 888,630 |
29 | 🇬🇧 UK | 864,698 |
30 | 🇲🇷 Mauritania | 860,217 |
31 | 🇰🇭 Cambodia | 856,400 |
32 | 🇦🇷 Argentina | 856,253 |
33 | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | 799,844 |
34 | 🇺🇬 Uganda | 760,545 |
35 | 🇫🇷 France | 708,995 |
36 | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 660,586 |
37 | 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands | 656,364 |
38 | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | 621,058 |
39 | 🇦🇴 Angola | 531,772 |
40 | 🇸🇳 Senegal | 515,108 |
41 | 🇩🇰 Denmark | 507,097 |
42 | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 501,855 |
43 | 🇬🇭 Ghana | 482,142 |
44 | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | 459,937 |
45 | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | 431,255 |
46 | 🇳🇦 Namibia | 411,170 |
47 | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | 376,763 |
48 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 340,131 |
49 | 🇬🇳 Guinea | 326,270 |
50 | 🇨🇴 Colombia | 321,390 |
51 | 🇨🇲 Cameroon | 300,130 |
52 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 297,233 |
53 | 🇮🇹 Italy | 296,358 |
54 | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | 276,701 |
55 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 276,258 |
56 | 🇬🇱 Greenland | 271,027 |
57 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 246,172 |
58 | 🇨🇩 DRC | 233,860 |
59 | 🇬🇪 Georgia | 220,365 |
60 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 220,312 |
61 | 🇱🇦 Laos | 206,008 |
62 | 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone | 205,015 |
63 | 🇬🇷 Greece | 203,558 |
64 | 🇵🇹 Portugal | 199,046 |
65 | 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea | 194,786 |
66 | 🇧🇿 Belize | 192,226 |
67 | 🇰🇮 Kiribati | 191,168 |
68 | 🇵🇦 Panama | 183,774 |
69 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 181,949 |
70 | 🇲🇼 Malawi | 180,508 |
71 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 175,222 |
72 | 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan | 171,933 |
73 | 🇿🇲 Zambia | 168,480 |
74 | 🇫🇲 Micronesia | 166,334 |
75 | 🇰🇪 Kenya | 152,728 |
76 | 🇹🇳 Tunisia | 150,321 |
77 | 🇲🇻 Maldives | 144,993 |
78 | 🇫🇮 Finland | 139,370 |
79 | 🇸🇨 Seychelles | 139,174 |
80 | 🇾🇪 Yemen | 131,317 |
81 | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | 130,333 |
82 | 🇳🇵 Nepal | 121,854 |
83 | 🇳🇷 Nauru | 120,410 |
84 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | 119,088 |
85 | 🇲🇱 Mali | 115,584 |
86 | 🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire | 111,015 |
87 | 🇹🇩 Chad | 103,110 |
88 | 🇱🇹 Lithuania | 101,290 |
89 | 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands | 95,933 |
90 | 🇭🇷 Croatia | 89,253 |
91 | 🇳🇮 Nicaragua | 86,280 |
92 | 🇩🇿 Algeria | 83,979 |
93 | 🇭🇳 Honduras | 79,518 |
94 | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 79,388 |
95 | 🇧🇯 Benin | 78,765 |
96 | 🇪🇪 Estonia | 73,085 |
97 | 🇸🇻 El Salvador | 71,754 |
98 | 🇨🇬 Congo | 70,330 |
99 | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | 66,403 |
100 | 🇮🇶 Iraq | 66,374 |
101 | 🇦🇪 UAE | 63,852 |
102 | 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau | 63,231 |
103 | 🇱🇻 Latvia | 62,560 |
104 | 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands | 62,314 |
105 | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | 61,390 |
106 | 🇻🇺 Vanuatu | 55,935 |
107 | 🇬🇲 Gambia | 52,687 |
108 | 🇳🇪 Niger | 47,672 |
109 | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 46,896 |
110 | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | 46,432 |
111 | 🇸🇩 Sudan | 44,450 |
112 | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | 43,666 |
113 | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | 42,407 |
114 | 🇨🇺 Cuba | 40,718 |
115 | 🇬🇾 Guyana | 34,358 |
116 | 🇫🇯 Fiji | 33,081 |
117 | 🇲🇺 Mauritius | 32,955 |
118 | 🇸🇸 South Sudan | 32,545 |
119 | 🇸🇷 Suriname | 32,170 |
120 | 🇱🇾 Libya | 31,961 |
121 | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | 31,710 |
122 | 🇹🇻 Tuvalu | 31,097 |
123 | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | 30,609 |
124 | 🇸🇴 Somalia | 30,000 |
125 | 🇬🇦 Gabon | 29,925 |
126 | 🇨🇫 Central African Republic | 28,215 |
127 | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | 27,792 |
128 | 🇱🇷 Liberia | 25,444 |
129 | 🇨🇼 Curacao | 25,027 |
130 | 🇨🇿 Czechia | 24,305 |
131 | 🇧🇬 Bulgaria | 24,183 |
132 | 🇭🇺 Hungary | 22,447 |
133 | 🇧🇮 Burundi | 21,040 |
134 | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | 20,397 |
135 | 🇧🇳 Brunei Darussalam | 20,063 |
136 | 🇦🇲 Armenia | 19,700 |
137 | 🇰🇲 Comoros | 19,356 |
138 | 🇲🇹 Malta | 18,936 |
139 | 🇹🇬 Togo | 18,866 |
140 | 🇦🇱 Albania | 18,283 |
141 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | 18,160 |
142 | 🇷🇴 Romania | 18,065 |
143 | 🇭🇹 Haiti | 17,830 |
144 | 🇮🇱 Israel | 16,910 |
145 | 🇶🇦 Qatar | 16,668 |
146 | 🇧🇭 Bahrain | 15,736 |
147 | 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan | 15,202 |
148 | 🇵🇫 French Polynesia | 14,802 |
149 | 🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago | 13,102 |
150 | 🇲🇩 Moldova | 12,905 |
151 | 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | 12,607 |
152 | 🇯🇲 Jamaica | 11,840 |
153 | 🇨🇻 Cabo Verde | 11,652 |
154 | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | 11,453 |
155 | 🇰🇬 Kyrgyz Republic | 10,320 |
156 | 🇷🇸 Serbia | 9,662 |
157 | 🇨🇾 Cyprus | 9,264 |
158 | 🇼🇸 Samoa | 9,186 |
159 | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 9,115 |
160 | 🇧🇸 Bahamas | 8,705 |
161 | 🇸🇾 Syria | 6,660 |
162 | 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea | 6,322 |
163 | 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste | 6,024 |
164 | 🇸🇹 Sao Tome & Principe | 6,020 |
165 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 5,550 |
166 | 🇵🇸 West Bank & Gaza | 5,348 |
167 | 🇦🇹 Austria | 5,270 |
168 | 🇳🇨 New Caledonia | 4,715 |
169 | 🇪🇷 Eritrea | 4,578 |
170 | 🇹🇯 Tajikistan | 4,389 |
171 | 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina | 4,124 |
172 | 🇸🇰 Slovak Republic | 4,119 |
173 | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | 3,975 |
174 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 3,850 |
175 | 🇲🇰 North Macedonia | 3,683 |
176 | 🇱🇧 Lebanon | 3,358 |
177 | 🇯🇪 Channel Islands | 3,333 |
178 | 🇦🇬 Antigua & Barbuda | 3,225 |
179 | 🇩🇯 Djibouti | 3,089 |
180 | 🇮🇲 Isle of Man | 3,041 |
181 | 🇯🇴 Jordan | 2,810 |
182 | 🇹🇨 Turks & Caicos Islands | 2,277 |
183 | 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan | 1,971 |
184 | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | 1,955 |
185 | 🇲🇪 Montenegro | 1,666 |
186 | 🇱🇨 St. Lucia | 1,625 |
187 | 🇻🇨 St. Vincent & the Grenadines | 1,599 |
188 | 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico | 1,598 |
189 | 🇱🇸 Lesotho | 1,556 |
190 | 🇲🇴 Macao | 1,500 |
191 | 🇹🇴 Tonga | 1,265 |
192 | 🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands | 1,134 |
193 | 🇦🇸 American Samoa | 1,079 |
194 | 🇬🇩 Grenada | 1,046 |
195 | 🇧🇧 Barbados | 872 |
196 | 🇵🇼 Palau | 804 |
197 | 🇻🇮 Virgin Islands | 428 |
198 | 🇧🇲 Bermuda | 419 |
199 | 🇰🇳 St. Kitts & Nevis | 371 |
200 | 🇩🇲 Dominica | 289 |
201 | 🇸🇽 Sint Maarten | 253 |
202 | 🇲🇵 Northern Mariana Islands | 230 |
203 | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | 208 |
204 | 🇧🇼 Botswana | 201 |
205 | 🇦🇼 Aruba | 167 |
206 | 🇸🇿 Eswatini | 165 |
207 | 🇬🇺 Guam | 141 |
208 | 🇰🇾 Cayman Islands | 135 |
209 | 🇫🇷 St. Martin | 90 |
210 | 🇬🇮 Gibraltar | 1 |
211 | 🇲🇨 Monaco | 1 |
N/A | 🌐 World | 216,872,258 |
Source: World Bank.
Other Asian countries—Indonesia (21.8 million tonnes), India (14.4 million tonnes), and Vietnam (8.2 million tonnes)—fill out the next few spots. Peru, with an annual production of 6.7 million tonnes rounds out the top five fish suppliers, which together account for nearly 60% of world fish supply.
The second half of the top 10 also has representatives from North America (the U.S.) and Europe (Russia), the latter whose fleets have also been caught fishing illegally off the coast of Africa.
Captured Ocean Fish vs Farmed Aquaculture Fish
A big footnote on total fish production is that it also includes aquaculture and farmed fish. Breaking down total fish supply between farmed and captured fish reveals some interesting trends. Here we rank the biggest fish suppliers by their farmed fish output.
Rank | Territory | Aquaculture Supply (2021, tonnes) | Captured Supply (2021, tonnes) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 🇨🇳 China | 72,805,297 | 13,142,837 |
2 | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 14,606,534 | 7,206,879 |
3 | 🇮🇳 India | 9,408,300 | 5,024,905 |
4 | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | 4,749,274 | 3,540,250 |
5 | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | 2,638,745 | 1,982,483 |
6 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 2,427,677 | 1,314,889 |
7 | 🇵🇭 Philippines | 2,272,528 | 1,842,067 |
8 | 🇳🇴 Norway | 1,665,112 | 2,555,512 |
9 | 🇪🇬 Egypt | 1,576,189 | 425,770 |
10 | 🇨🇱 Chile | 1,443,520 | 2,390,072 |
11 | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 989,898 | 1,412,123 |
12 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 963,680 | 3,150,890 |
13 | 🇲🇲 Myanmar | 929,217 | 1,665,740 |
14 | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | 896,435 | 863,619 |
15 | 🇰🇵 North Korea | 680,560 | 208,070 |
16 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 650,356 | 760,623 |
17 | 🇮🇷 Iran | 478,737 | 779,466 |
18 | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | 471,686 | 328,158 |
19 | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 448,615 | 4,282,433 |
20 | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | 416,978 | 1,337,231 |
21 | 🇰🇭 Cambodia | 348,350 | 508,050 |
22 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 319,342 | 5,167,703 |
23 | 🇪🇸 Spain | 279,910 | 808,544 |
24 | 🇳🇬 Nigeria | 275,645 | 805,210 |
25 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 246,914 | 1,628,652 |
26 | 🇬🇧 UK | 230,280 | 634,419 |
27 | 🇫🇷 France | 198,886 | 510,110 |
28 | 🇨🇴 Colombia | 192,521 | 128,869 |
29 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 191,449 | 754,505 |
30 | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 164,527 | 496,059 |
31 | 🇵🇪 Peru | 150,818 | 6,576,171 |
32 | 🇮🇹 Italy | 145,862 | 150,496 |
33 | 🇬🇷 Greece | 143,926 | 59,632 |
34 | 🇺🇬 Uganda | 138,558 | 621,987 |
35 | 🇱🇦 Laos | 135,008 | 71,000 |
36 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 126,206 | 171,026 |
37 | 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan | 118,933 | 53,000 |
38 | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | 116,839 | 343,098 |
39 | 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands | 115,760 | 540,604 |
40 | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 114,490 | 67,459 |
41 | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | 106,482 | 514,575 |
42 | 🇳🇵 Nepal | 100,854 | 21,000 |
43 | 🇬🇭 Ghana | 89,380 | 392,762 |
44 | 🇿🇲 Zambia | 63,355 | 105,125 |
45 | 🇭🇳 Honduras | 63,268 | 16,250 |
46 | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | 53,601 | 223,100 |
47 | 🇮🇸 Iceland | 53,136 | 1,056,427 |
48 | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | 50,977 | 380,278 |
49 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 44,787 | 201,385 |
50 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 42,099 | 234,159 |
51 | 🇩🇰 Denmark | 40,594 | 466,503 |
52 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 40,590 | 299,541 |
53 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 32,649 | 187,663 |
54 | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | 32,583 | 11,082 |
55 | 🇳🇮 Nicaragua | 31,006 | 55,275 |
56 | 🇭🇷 Croatia | 26,831 | 62,422 |
57 | 🇹🇳 Tunisia | 26,077 | 124,243 |
58 | 🇮🇶 Iraq | 22,694 | 43,680 |
59 | 🇨🇺 Cuba | 22,665 | 18,053 |
60 | 🇰🇪 Kenya | 21,825 | 130,903 |
61 | 🇨🇿 Czechia | 20,991 | 3,314 |
62 | 🇵🇹 Portugal | 19,516 | 179,530 |
63 | 🇦🇲 Armenia | 18,930 | 770 |
64 | 🇭🇺 Hungary | 17,847 | 4,601 |
65 | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | 17,309 | 29,123 |
66 | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 16,882 | 62,506 |
67 | 🇲🇹 Malta | 16,433 | 2,503 |
68 | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | 16,396 | 113,937 |
69 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 15,253 | 159,969 |
70 | 🇧🇬 Bulgaria | 15,174 | 9,009 |
71 | 🇮🇱 Israel | 14,875 | 2,035 |
72 | 🇫🇮 Finland | 14,399 | 124,971 |
73 | 🇵🇾 Paraguay | 14,150 | 17,560 |
74 | 🇲🇩 Moldova | 12,905 | 0 |
75 | 🇸🇻 El Salvador | 12,749 | 59,005 |
76 | 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands | 12,461 | 49,854 |
77 | 🇷🇴 Romania | 11,714 | 6,351 |
78 | 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | 11,107 | 1,500 |
79 | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 10,525 | 491,330 |
80 | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | 10,313 | 32,094 |
81 | 🇰🇬 Kyrgyz Republic | 10,300 | 20 |
82 | 🇲🇼 Malawi | 9,948 | 170,560 |
83 | 🇸🇩 Sudan | 9,900 | 34,550 |
84 | 🇨🇲 Cameroon | 9,800 | 290,330 |
85 | 🇦🇱 Albania | 8,641 | 9,642 |
86 | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 8,504 | 611 |
87 | 🇲🇱 Mali | 8,484 | 107,100 |
88 | 🇨🇾 Cyprus | 7,862 | 1,401 |
89 | 🇷🇸 Serbia | 7,308 | 2,354 |
90 | 🇵🇦 Panama | 6,704 | 177,069 |
91 | 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea | 6,122 | 188,664 |
92 | 🇨🇮 Cote d'Ivoire | 5,720 | 105,295 |
93 | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 5,438 | 41,457 |
94 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 5,244 | 306 |
95 | 🇨🇩 DRC | 5,195 | 228,665 |
96 | 🇱🇹 Lithuania | 5,138 | 96,152 |
97 | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | 5,058 | 22,734 |
98 | 🇦🇹 Austria | 4,920 | 350 |
99 | 🇩🇿 Algeria | 4,779 | 79,200 |
100 | 🇧🇳 Brunei Darussalam | 4,768 | 15,295 |
101 | 🇧🇯 Benin | 4,150 | 74,615 |
102 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | 3,909 | 115,179 |
103 | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | 3,853 | 7,600 |
104 | 🇧🇦 Bosnia & Herzegovina | 3,819 | 305 |
105 | 🇦🇷 Argentina | 3,687 | 852,566 |
106 | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | 3,200 | 373,563 |
107 | 🇲🇰 North Macedonia | 3,169 | 514 |
108 | 🇦🇴 Angola | 2,808 | 528,964 |
109 | 🇬🇪 Georgia | 2,790 | 217,575 |
110 | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | 2,730 | 17,667 |
111 | 🇦🇪 UAE | 2,663 | 61,189 |
112 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 2,364 | 1,486 |
113 | 🇸🇾 Syria | 2,350 | 4,310 |
114 | 🇲🇺 Mauritius | 2,316 | 30,640 |
115 | 🇸🇰 Slovak Republic | 2,304 | 1,815 |
116 | 🇯🇴 Jordan | 2,145 | 665 |
117 | 🇹🇯 Tajikistan | 2,039 | 2,350 |
118 | 🇲🇦 Morocco | 2,006 | 1,432,199 |
119 | 🇴🇲 Oman | 1,703 | 922,083 |
120 | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | 1,686 | 269 |
121 | 🇭🇹 Haiti | 1,610 | 16,220 |
122 | 🇵🇫 French Polynesia | 1,559 | 13,243 |
123 | 🇱🇸 Lesotho | 1,501 | 55 |
124 | 🇧🇮 Burundi | 1,490 | 19,550 |
125 | 🇳🇨 New Caledonia | 1,411 | 3,305 |
126 | 🇸🇳 Senegal | 1,151 | 513,957 |
127 | 🇬🇳 Guinea | 1,150 | 325,120 |
128 | 🇯🇪 Channel Islands | 1,145 | 2,188 |
129 | 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste | 1,091 | 4,933 |
130 | 🇨🇬 Congo | 911 | 69,419 |
131 | 🇱🇻 Latvia | 901 | 61,658 |
132 | 🇯🇲 Jamaica | 884 | 10,956 |
133 | 🇹🇬 Togo | 882 | 17,984 |
134 | 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso | 878 | 29,731 |
135 | 🇲🇪 Montenegro | 858 | 808 |
136 | 🇪🇪 Estonia | 849 | 72,236 |
137 | 🇱🇧 Lebanon | 778 | 2,580 |
138 | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | 740 | 60,650 |
139 | 🇵🇸 West Bank & Gaza | 687 | 4,661 |
140 | 🇧🇿 Belize | 605 | 191,621 |
141 | 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan | 507 | 1,464 |
142 | 🇳🇪 Niger | 472 | 47,200 |
143 | 🇰🇼 Kuwait | 450 | 3,525 |
144 | 🇳🇦 Namibia | 321 | 410,849 |
145 | 🇱🇷 Liberia | 275 | 25,169 |
146 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | 223 | 17,937 |
147 | 🇨🇫 Central African Republic | 215 | 28,000 |
148 | 🇱🇨 St. Lucia | 211 | 1,414 |
149 | 🇫🇯 Fiji | 206 | 32,874 |
150 | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | 193 | 15 |
151 | 🇧🇼 Botswana | 163 | 38 |
152 | 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan | 160 | 15,042 |
153 | 🇬🇾 Guyana | 142 | 34,216 |
154 | 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone | 115 | 204,900 |
155 | 🇬🇺 Guam | 115 | 26 |
156 | 🇶🇦 Qatar | 114 | 16,555 |
157 | 🇹🇩 Chad | 110 | 103,000 |
158 | 🇺🇾 Uruguay | 103 | 66,300 |
159 | 🇹🇴 Tonga | 100 | 1,165 |
160 | 🇸🇿 Eswatini | 100 | 65 |
161 | 🇬🇦 Gabon | 65 | 29,860 |
162 | 🇸🇸 South Sudan | 45 | 32,500 |
163 | 🇲🇵 Northern Mariana Islands | 41 | 189 |
164 | 🇸🇷 Suriname | 40 | 32,130 |
165 | 🇬🇲 Gambia | 35 | 52,652 |
166 | 🇨🇻 Cabo Verde | 28 | 11,624 |
167 | 🇧🇧 Barbados | 26 | 847 |
168 | 🇬🇩 Grenada | 23 | 1,024 |
169 | 🇦🇬 Antigua & Barbuda | 20 | 3,205 |
170 | 🇦🇸 American Samoa | 20 | 1,059 |
171 | 🇹🇹 Trinidad & Tobago | 18 | 13,084 |
172 | 🇵🇼 Palau | 18 | 786 |
173 | 🇵🇷 Puerto Rico | 18 | 1,580 |
174 | 🇧🇭 Bahrain | 16 | 15,720 |
175 | 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea | 15 | 6,307 |
176 | 🇻🇨 St. Vincent & the Grenadines | 13 | 1,586 |
177 | 🇾🇪 Yemen | 10 | 131,307 |
178 | 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau | 10 | 63,221 |
179 | 🇱🇾 Libya | 10 | 31,951 |
180 | 🇼🇸 Samoa | 10 | 9,176 |
181 | 🇰🇾 Cayman Islands | 10 | 125 |
182 | 🇻🇮 Virgin Islands | 8 | 420 |
183 | 🇪🇷 Eritrea | 4 | 4,574 |
184 | 🇻🇺 Vanuatu | 3 | 55,932 |
185 | 🇰🇮 Kiribati | 2 | 191,166 |
186 | 🇰🇳 St. Kitts & Nevis | 2 | 369 |
187 | 🇦🇼 Aruba | 2 | 165 |
188 | 🇹🇻 Tuvalu | 1 | 31,096 |
189 | 🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands | 1 | 1,133 |
190 | 🇩🇲 Dominica | 1 | 288 |
191 | 🇳🇷 Nauru | 1 | 120,409 |
192 | 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands | 0 | 95,933 |
193 | 🇫🇲 Micronesia | 0 | 166,334 |
194 | 🇸🇨 Seychelles | 0 | 139,174 |
195 | 🇨🇼 Curacao | 0 | 25,027 |
196 | 🇧🇸 Bahamas | 0 | 8,705 |
197 | 🇹🇨 Turks & Caicos Islands | 0 | 2,277 |
198 | 🇲🇷 Mauritania | 0 | 860,217 |
199 | 🇬🇱 Greenland | 0 | 271,027 |
200 | 🇲🇻 Maldives | 0 | 144,993 |
201 | 🇸🇴 Somalia | 0 | 30,000 |
202 | 🇰🇲 Comoros | 0 | 19,356 |
203 | 🇸🇹 Sao Tome & Principe | 0 | 6,020 |
204 | 🇩🇯 Djibouti | 0 | 3,089 |
205 | 🇮🇲 Isle of Man | 0 | 3,041 |
206 | 🇲🇴 Macao | 0 | 1,500 |
207 | 🇧🇲 Bermuda | 0 | 419 |
208 | 🇸🇽 Sint Maarten | 0 | 253 |
209 | 🇫🇷 St. Martin | 0 | 90 |
210 | 🇬🇮 Gibraltar | 0 | 1 |
211 | 🇲🇨 Monaco | 0 | 1 |
N/A | 🌐 World | 126,035,146 | 92,177,119 |
Source: World Bank.
Aquaculture makes up the majority of fish production for all the big Asian producers in the top 10. However the inverse is true for European, North American, and South American countries.
While the history of aquaculture goes back thousands of years, its use began to rise steeply in the 2000s, with production overtaking captured fish in 2014. First seen as a solution to overfishing and to make the industry more sustainable, aquaculture’s problems are now beginning to weigh on the industry.
From the pollution it causes—in the form of feces—to its dependence on wild catch for feeding the stock, makes it far less sustainable than what is assumed. In fact, about 25% of wild catch is turned into fish meal—a mixture of less appetizing fish like anchovies, menhaden and herring—used to feed farmed fish.
How Secure is the Ocean Fishing Industry?
Fish and seafood is one of the most accessible sources of meat in the world, accounting for 17% of animal protein consumed. However, almost 90% of the world’s fish stocks are fully depleted while demand only continues to grow.
Unregulated and illegal fishing not only adds a sustainability burden to the planet, but the industry is also rife with human rights abuses, including human trafficking and modern slavery.
Meanwhile, only 3% of the world’s oceans are designated as protected marine reserves and even they lack the safeguards to fully stop exploitative fishing.

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.
Green
Mapped: Most Air-Polluted Cities in the World
India is home to many of the world’s most air-polluted cities, accounting for 11 of the top 20 cities in 2024.

Cities With the Worst Air Pollution in 2024
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
Air pollution remains one of the deadliest environmental threats, contributing to millions of premature deaths each year.
In 2024, only 17% of cities worldwide met the World Health Organization’s annual PM2.5 guideline of less than 5 µg/m3, indicating that the vast majority of urban populations are exposed to unhealthy air.
This map visualizes the 20 most air-polluted cities in 2024, based on fine particulate matter (PM2.5) data from IQAir.
Which Cities Have the Worst Air Pollution?
Below, we show the top 20 cities with the worst PM2.5 levels in 2024.
Rank | City | Country | 2024 PM2.5 (µg/m³) | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Byrnihat | 🇮🇳 India | 128.2 | |
2 | Delhi | 🇮🇳 India | 108.3 | |
3 | Karaganda | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 104.8 | |
4 | Mullanpur | 🇮🇳 India | 102.3 | |
5 | Lahore | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 102.1 | |
6 | Faridabad | 🇮🇳 India | 101.2 | |
7 | Dera Ismail Khan | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 93.0 | |
8 | N'Djamena | 🇹🇩 Chad | 91.8 | |
9 | Loni | 🇮🇳 India | 91.7 | |
10 | New Delhi | 🇮🇳 India | 91.6 | |
11 | Multan | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 91.4 | |
12 | Peshawar | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 91.0 | |
13 | Faisalabad | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 88.8 | |
14 | Sialkot | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 88.8 | |
15 | Gurugram | 🇮🇳 India | 87.4 | |
16 | Ganganagar | 🇮🇳 India | 86.6 | |
17 | Hotan | 🇨🇳 China | 84.5 | |
18 | Greater Noida | 🇮🇳 India | 83.5 | |
19 | Bhiwadi | 🇮🇳 India | 83.1 | |
20 | Muzaffarnagar | 🇮🇳 India | 83.1 |
India is home to some of the world’s most air-polluted cities, accounting for 11 of the top 20 in 2024.
Byrnihat, a city in northeastern India, recorded the worst air pollution globally last year, with a PM2.5 concentration of 128.2 micrograms per cubic meter—over 25 times higher than the World Health Organization’s recommended limit.
Delhi, a metropolis of over 30 million people and the capital territory of India, recorded the second-worst air pollution levels in 2024.
The city experiences the worst winter air pollution of any major city, driven by crop burning in nearby states, stagnant cold air, and weak wind patterns that trap and concentrate smog over the capital.
Many Indian cities struggle with severe air pollution due to a mix of industrial emissions, vehicle exhaust, and reliance on fossil fuels, all worsened by weak regulation and seasonal weather patterns.
Most of the cities with the worst air pollution in 2024 are located in India, Pakistan, or other parts of Asia. N’Djamena, Chad, was the only non-Asian city to rank among the top 20.
Learn More on the Voronoi App 
To see which countries have the worst air pollution, check out this graphic that visualizes the world’s most polluted countries by their annual average PM2.5 concentration.
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