FAOSTAT releases today new food balance sheets estimates from 2010 to 2023.

The Statistics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division for aquatic products, compiles supply utilization accounts (SUAs) for 178 countries covering a total of 449 primary and derived products. The latest release of food balance sheets provides time-series data from 2010 to 2023.

Main findings:

• In 2023, global food supply, measured in terms of average per capita dietary energy supply (DES), crossed the historic milestone of 3 000 kilocalories per capita per day.
• Europe, the Americas and Oceania have consistently maintained a higher food supply than the world average. The fastest increase in the DES between 2010 and 2023 was in Asia, steadily closing the gap from the world average. Food supply in Africa remains low and stagnant.
• Globally, cereals are the biggest component of food supply, with a 42 percent share in DES and 36 percent share in protein supply in 2023. Livestock products (meat, eggs and milk) accounted for 16 percent of DES and 36 percent of protein supply. Oils and oil crops accounted for 13 percent of DES while sugar and sweeteners accounted for about 8 percent.
• Of the total supply, 45 percent of cereals and 42 percent of vegetable oils were used directly as food in 2023. On the other hand, almost all the meat produced, 88 percent of vegetables and 83 percent of fruits were used directly for human consumption.
• Globally, about 35 percent of cereals and 24 percent of pulses were used as animal feed in 2023.
• The use of agricultural products for other non-food purposes has been on the rise. In 2023, 45 percent of vegetable oils was used for non-food purposes. The use of sugar crops for other non-food purposes is much higher in the Americas (26 percent) than anywhere else in the world.
• International trade has become increasingly important in global agrifood systems. In 2023, about 46 percent of the global production of vegetable oils, 34 percent of fish and seafood and 34 percent of sugars and sweeteners, 20 percent of cereals and 26 percent of pulses were exported.