Food Retail — Emissions in South Africa

South Africa: Food Retail — Emissions was 5,826 kt in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
5,826 kt
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
9th
of 188 countries
All-time high
8,029 kt
in 2016
All-time low
1,542 kt
in 1992
Years of data
34
1990–2023

Food Retail — Emissions in South Africa, 1990–2023

2.0k4.0k6.0k8.0k1990200620231990: 2.1k kt1991: 2.1k kt1992: 1.5k kt1993: 1.7k kt1994: 1.8k kt1995: 2.0k kt1996: 2.1k kt1997: 2.3k kt1998: 2.6k kt1999: 2.6k kt2000: 2.8k kt2001: 2.7k kt2002: 2.7k kt2003: 3.0k kt2004: 3.5k kt2005: 3.5k kt2006: 3.6k kt2007: 3.8k kt2008: 4.3k kt2009: 4.1k kt2010: 5.0k kt2011: 5.0k kt2012: 5.7k kt2013: 5.9k kt2014: 6.2k kt2015: 5.7k kt2016: 8.0k kt2017: 6.9k kt2018: 6.8k kt2019: 6.2k kt2020: 5.9k kt2021: 6.0k kt2022: 5.8k kt2023: 5.8k kt

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

Analysis

In 2023, food retail — emissions in South Africa stood at 5,826 kt.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, food retail — emissions in South Africa peaked at 8,029 kt in 2016 and was at its lowest, 1,542 kt, in 1992.

South Africa ranks 9th of 188 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 2,080 kt 1,542 kt 2,599 kt 10
2000s 3,400 kt 2,683 kt 4,289 kt 10
2010s 6,138 kt 4,963 kt 8,029 kt 10
2020s 5,887 kt 5,826 kt 5,993 kt 4

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 6 Germany 9,187 kt compare
  2. 7 Saudi Arabia 8,503 kt compare
  3. 8 Indonesia 7,372 kt compare
  4. 10 Poland 4,893 kt compare
  5. 11 Italy 4,823 kt compare
  6. 12 Thailand 4,428 kt compare

See the full ranking of 243 places →

More climate change data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is food retail — emissions in South Africa?
Food retail — emissions in South Africa was 5,826 kt in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest food retail — emissions recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 8,029 kt in 2016.
What is the lowest food retail — emissions recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 1,542 kt in 1992.
How does South Africa rank for food retail — emissions?
South Africa ranks 9th out of 188 countries with data for 2023.
Is food retail — emissions rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Food Retail — Emissions (CO2). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Food Retail — Emissions in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://climate.statizoid.com/stat/food-retail-emissions-co2/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Food Retail — Emissions (CO2)
Unit
kt
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
243 places, 7,524 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.