China vs United States: Food Processing — Emissions

China
84,975 kt
in 2023
United States
106,272 kt
in 2023
China rank
3rd
United States rank
2nd

Food Processing — Emissions over time

  • China
  • United States
050.0k100.0k150.0k199020062023

How they compare

United States currently reports 106,272 kt against 84,975 kt in China, a difference of 21,297 kt.

That makes United States's figure about 1.3 times China's.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 34 shared years of data; in 1990 it was United States ahead.

China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 112 countries.

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

Head to head by decade

Decade China United States Difference Ahead
1990s 3,080 kt 81,292 kt 78,212 kt United States
2000s 117,141 kt 121,550 kt 4,410 kt United States
2010s 135,061 kt 105,669 kt 29,391 kt China
2020s 87,084 kt 104,245 kt 17,161 kt United States

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher food processing — emissions, China or United States?
United States, at 106,272 kt against 84,975 kt in China as of 2023.
What is the difference in food processing — emissions between China and United States?
21,297 kt, with United States 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 food processing — emissions?
China ranks 3rd and United States ranks 2nd of 112 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as Food Processing — 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: Food Processing — Emissions. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/compare/food-processing-emissions-co2-fao-tier-1/china/united-states/

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About this data

Indicator
Food Processing — Emissions (CO2)
Unit
kt
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
145 places, 3,850 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