Food Packaging — Energy Use in China

China: Food Packaging — Energy Use was 654,509 TJ in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
654,509 TJ
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 65 countries
All-time high
818,811 TJ
in 2011
All-time low
33,182 TJ
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Food Packaging — Energy Use in China, 1990–2023

0200.0k400.0k600.0k800.0k1990200620231990: 33.2k TJ1991: 37.2k TJ1992: 37.9k TJ1993: 45.0k TJ1994: 46.1k TJ1995: 46.0k TJ1996: 48.1k TJ1997: 46.3k TJ1998: 45.0k TJ1999: 40.1k TJ2000: 117.2k TJ2001: 347.5k TJ2002: 347.1k TJ2003: 412.1k TJ2004: 560.2k TJ2005: 634.2k TJ2006: 639.5k TJ2007: 692.4k TJ2008: 733.2k TJ2009: 741.8k TJ2010: 745.5k TJ2011: 818.8k TJ2012: 747.4k TJ2013: 731.5k TJ2014: 751.2k TJ2015: 686.5k TJ2016: 672.3k TJ2017: 603.6k TJ2018: 568.3k TJ2019: 510.2k TJ2020: 554.1k TJ2021: 517.8k TJ2022: 654.5k TJ2023: 654.5k TJ

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in TJ.

Analysis

The most recent figure for food packaging — energy use in China is 654,509 TJ, measured in 2023.

The figure is down 10.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, food packaging — energy use in China peaked at 818,811 TJ in 2011 and was at its lowest, 33,182 TJ, in 1990.

China ranks 1st of 65 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Food Packaging — Energy Use in China, year by year

Annual values for Food Packaging — Energy Use (Coal) in China, 1990 to 2023.
Year TJ Change
1990 33,182 TJ —
1991 37,230 TJ +12.2%
1992 37,921 TJ +1.9%
1993 45,011 TJ +18.7%
1994 46,091 TJ +2.4%
1995 45,986 TJ -0.2%
1996 48,121 TJ +4.6%
1997 46,335 TJ -3.7%
1998 44,982 TJ -2.9%
1999 40,108 TJ -10.8%
2000 117,150 TJ +192.1%
2001 347,540 TJ +196.7%
2002 347,109 TJ -0.1%
2003 412,117 TJ +18.7%
2004 560,219 TJ +35.9%
2005 634,250 TJ +13.2%
2006 639,522 TJ +0.8%
2007 692,351 TJ +8.3%
2008 733,228 TJ +5.9%
2009 741,834 TJ +1.2%
2010 745,537 TJ +0.5%
2011 818,811 TJ +9.8%
2012 747,396 TJ -8.7%
2013 731,497 TJ -2.1%
2014 751,161 TJ +2.7%
2015 686,460 TJ -8.6%
2016 672,260 TJ -2.1%
2017 603,554 TJ -10.2%
2018 568,297 TJ -5.8%
2019 510,162 TJ -10.2%
2020 554,137 TJ +8.6%
2021 517,818 TJ -6.6%
2022 654,509 TJ +26.4%
2023 654,509 TJ +0.0%

China compared with similar countries

  • China's 654,509 TJ is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 469.55 TJ, 1393.9× the median. (16 countries reporting)
  • China's 654,509 TJ is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3,085 TJ, 212.1× the median. (7 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Food Packaging — Energy Use in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2001 +196.7% 117,150 TJ 347,540 TJ
2000 +192.1% 40,108 TJ 117,150 TJ

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 42,497 TJ 33,182 TJ 48,121 TJ 10
2000s 522,532 TJ 117,150 TJ 741,834 TJ 10
2010s 683,514 TJ 510,162 TJ 818,811 TJ 10
2020s 595,243 TJ 517,818 TJ 654,509 TJ 4

Countries ranked near China

  1. 2 China, mainland 635,758 TJ compare
  2. 2 Viet Nam 6,922 TJ compare
  3. 3 Türkiye 4,959 TJ compare
  4. 3 OECD 46,351 TJ compare
  5. 4 South Africa 18,976 TJ compare

See the full ranking of 99 places →

More climate change data for China

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is food packaging — energy use in China?
Food packaging — energy use in China was 654,509 TJ in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest food packaging — energy use recorded in China?
The highest recorded value was 818,811 TJ in 2011.
What is the lowest food packaging — energy use recorded in China?
The lowest recorded value was 33,182 TJ in 1990.
How does China rank for food packaging — energy use?
China ranks 1st out of 65 countries with data for 2023.
Is food packaging — energy use rising or falling in China?
Over the last ten years it is down 10.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this China data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Food Packaging — Energy Use (Coal). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Food Packaging — Energy Use in China. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 27 September 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/food-packaging-energy-use-coal/china/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/food-packaging-energy-use-coal/china/">Food Packaging — Energy Use in China</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Food Packaging — Energy Use (Coal)
Unit
TJ
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
99 places, 2,799 data points, 1990–2023
Last refreshed

The FAOSTAT domain on Emissions from Pre- and post- agricultural production includes the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and related activity data, generated from pre- and post-agriculture production stages of the agri-food 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). The domain includes methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), carbon dioxide (CO2) and CO2 equivalent (CO2eq) emissions from the above activities as well as the aggregate fluorinated gases (F-gases) emissions. Estimates are available by country, with global coverage and are updated annually.The FAOSTAT domain disseminates information estimates of CH4, N2O, CO2 emissions, F-gases, their aggregates in CO2eq in units of kilotonnes (kt, or 10^6 kg), and the underlying activity data. CO2eq emissions are computed by using the IPCC Fifth Assessment report global warming potentials, AR5 (IPCC, 2014). Data are available for most countries and territories, for standard FAOSTAT regional aggregations, and for Annex I and non-Annex I country groups.