GAEZ v4
The GAEZ v4 assessment was published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in 2021 to provide a global evaluation of agricultural resources, land suitability and attainable crop yields.
GAEZ v4 includes a 2010 baseline dataset comprising land cover, a harmonized global soil database, terrain data, protected areas, and areas of high biodiversity value. Climatic conditions are based on both historical climate data from 1961 to 2010 and future climate projections derived from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) AR5 Earth System Model (ESM) outputs for the four Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs).
GAEZ v4 provides crop suitability and potential yields for 51 crops under rain-fed and irrigated conditions and account for two different levels of management. The results are presented in a regular 5 arc-minute raster grid (about 9 x 9 km at the equator).
The dataset is organized into modules which cover six thematic areas:
- land and water resources;
- agro-climatic resources;
- agro-climatic potential yield;
- suitability and attainable yield;
- actual yields and production; and
- yield gaps and production gaps.
The results of the crop evaluation have also been aggregated and tabulated by administrative units – continental, regional and national aggregations – and by broad hydro-regions.