Do you see the world in numbers? Do you study charts like an art lover studies Renoir? Do you love statistics in all its forms? Well, FAO does too! When it comes to food and agriculture data, FAO is one of the world leaders in knowledge. Subject experts and in-house statisticians work day in and day out to collect, validate and disseminate data and information on food and agriculture, from hunger, malnutrition and rural poverty to food systems and the sustainable use of natural resources. The goal? To help governments make the right decisions about programmes, policies and investments and to help individuals further their scientific research on important topics that affect the planet.
FAO has many different statistical databases on topics as wide-ranging as agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, forestry, food prices and market information, economic, social and rural development, nutrition, natural, genetic and biodiversity resources and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is, in fact, a large part of FAO’s mandate to collect, analyse, interpret and disseminate all types of information related to food, agriculture and the sustainable management of natural resources.
Knowledge is meant to be shared, and FAO has always encouraged the use of our data to inform humanitarian work or enhance scientific advancement. However, now that we have adopted an open data licensing policy, it is even easier for researchers, journalists, scholars, humanitarian workers or students to access, download, copy and employ these data sets for free and for redistribution.
Here are 5 interesting facts and just some of the many data sources that we encourage you to use and share with the rest of the world:
1. Bananas are the most consumed fruit in the world.
Source: FAOSTAT
Worldwide, humans consume more than 88 million tonnes of bananas every year. This interesting bit of information is taken from one of FAO’s largest food and agriculture database: FAOSTAT. This resource provides data for over 245 countries and territories and has information dating back to 1961. Whether you are looking for what country is the top producer of grapes or the commodity most exported by Egypt, for example, FAOSTAT can provide you with this information in chart, table or comma-separated value (.csv) formats.
2. Over the past 70 years, water withdrawal in Asia has tripled.
Source: AQUASTAT
Water use in Asia has grown immensely. By far, the largest share of this total water withdrawal (81 percent) is used for agriculture. This number reaches more than 90 percent in South Asia. FAO AQUASTAT collects, analyses and disseminates information on water resources, water use, agricultural water management and water-related policies and legislation. The database is segmented by country and provides not only data and metadata but also reports, country profiles, river basin profiles, regional analyses, maps, tables, spatial data, guidelines and other tools on concrete topics such as dams, irrigated crop calendars and reuse of wastewater.