China vs United States: Agrifood systems — Emissions

China
1.16 million kt
in 2023
United States
514,133 kt
in 2023
China rank
3rd
United States rank
6th

Agrifood systems — Emissions over time

  • China
  • United States
200.0k400.0k600.0k800.0k1.0M1.2M199020062023

How they compare

China currently reports 1.16 million kt against 514,133 kt in United States, a difference of 641,397 kt.

That makes China's figure about 2.2 times United States's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 34 shared years of data; in 1990 it was United States ahead.

China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 6th of 257 countries.

Across the 4 decades both report, China averaged higher in 3 and United States in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade China United States Difference Ahead
1990s 339,875 kt 530,205 kt 190,330 kt United States
2000s 663,964 kt 548,932 kt 115,032 kt China
2010s 975,925 kt 530,098 kt 445,828 kt China
2020s 1.11 million kt 524,578 kt 587,940 kt China

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher agrifood systems — emissions, China or United States?
China, at 1.16 million kt against 514,133 kt in United States as of 2023.
What is the difference in agrifood systems — emissions between China and United States?
641,397 kt, with China ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for China and United States?
34 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2023.
How do China and United States rank globally for agrifood systems — emissions?
China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 6th of 257 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as Agrifood systems — Emissions (CO2). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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China vs United States: Agrifood systems — Emissions. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/compare/agrifood-systems-emissions-co2-fao-tier-1/china/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Agrifood systems — Emissions (CO2)
Unit
kt
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
291 places, 9,669 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions Totals summarizes the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions disseminated in the FAOSTAT Climate Change domains of emissions from agrifood systems. Data are computed following the Tier 1 methods of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Guidelines for National greenhouse gas (GHG) Inventories (IPCC, 1996; 1997; 2000; 2002; 2006; 2014). Emissions from other economic sectors as defined by the IPCC are also disseminated in the domain for completeness. Methodological details can be found at: https://files-faostat.fao.org/production/GT/GT_en.pdf