FAOSTAT - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAOSTAT)

On-farm methane and nitrous oxide per kg of product for 14 crop and livestock commodities, by country and year from 1961 to 2023, from FAOSTAT, the statistics database of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

Intergovernmental
  • Food
SpecialistOpen licence
Factors
2,028
Values
111,893

One per year and method

Countries
202

213 regions, sub-national included

Edition
2026-02-20

published 20 Feb 2026 · all versions

Last loaded
17 Oct 2026

Report a newer version

Overview

FAOSTAT is the statistics database of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Its domain Emissions intensities divides the greenhouse gas emissions FAO estimates for each commodity inside the farm gate by the country's production of that commodity. The method is set out in FAO's methodological note (release October 2025).

We load the edition FAO dated 20 February 2026, from the normalized bulk download. FAO revises the whole series at each edition, so a later edition replaces these values rather than adding a year to them.

At a glance

Publisher
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAOSTAT)
Kind
Intergovernmental
Scope
SpecialistOne category holds at least 5% of its factors: Food and agriculture, with 100.0%. A generalist needs 4.
Home region
World
Edition
2026-02-20
Licence
Open licence (cc-by-4.0-fao-db-terms)

What open-climate.ai standardised

over the publisher's own fileHow we standardise
5 more things standardised

Audit checks

131 passed2 known limitations3 enforced when loadedlast run 22 Oct 2026

Checks we run on every load to keep the data above trustworthy. Counts are for this library; the grey figure is the same check across all libraries. Point at the i to see why a check matters.

What the statuses meanHow checks are countedWhy we checkHow checks are grouped

Needs attention

  • Values that exclude a carbon pool list the gases behind the total

    Known limitation · 114,717 in this library · 180,272 in all libraries

  • No default value is withheld for poor quality

    Known limitation · 9 in this library

One category axis

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  • Every source category maps to our vocabulary

    Enforced when loaded

  • The publisher's classification is kept

    Passed

  • Every classification level has a valid parent

    Passed

  • Every product code comes with the codes above it

    Passed

  • A publisher's own classification is used only by that publisher

    Passed

  • A standard classification code has one label in every library

    Passed

Coded regions

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  • Every region is a known code

    Enforced when loaded

  • No named region is filed under a broader one

    Passed

  • Every region sits in the world hierarchy

    Passed

Canonical units

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  • Every unit is a known code

    Enforced when loaded

  • One source unit maps to one unit

    Passed

  • A unit label means the same in every library

    Passed

  • A unit label that names no basis folds one way

    Passed · 2 in all libraries

Declared boundaries

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  • Every boundary states what it includes

    Passed

  • Boundary scope terms are known codes

    Passed

  • No two factors for the same activity partly overlap in scope

    Passed

  • Separate stages of one activity are linked as parts

    Passed

  • Every part of a factor states its boundary

    Passed

  • Every biofuel counted with its biogenic CO2 says how much

    Passed

  • No recycling credit is hidden inside a life-cycle total

    Passed

  • No burden value hides a credit inside it

    Passed · 348 in all libraries

Warming potentials

Learn more
  • Methane and nitrous oxide figures match the stated GWP

    Passed

  • Every convertible value has its AR6 version

    Passed

  • CO2e totals leave out what their basis excludes

    Passed

  • Values that exclude a carbon pool list the gases behind the total

    Known limitation · 114,717 in this library · 180,272 in all libraries

  • Standardised figures keep every gas the publisher lists

    Passed

  • Every value states what its CO2e total includes

    Passed

  • A library with no AR6 version at all has a recorded reason

    Passed

Data quality

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  • Quality ratings fall inside their scale

    Passed

  • Every zero value is explained

    Passed

  • No default value is withheld for poor quality

    Known limitation · 9 in this library

  • No implausibly high per-kilogram value is rated reliable

    Passed

  • Every quality level gives a recognised reason

    Passed

  • A zero that is only a gap in the source is withheld

    Passed

  • The library is not rated entirely on one fallback quality level

    Passed

Languages

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  • Every factor has an English name

    Passed

  • Translations match the current source text

    Passed

  • Translations follow a corrected source text

    Passed

  • Recorded translations survive a reload

    Passed

  • Every served factor has a name

    Passed

  • Factors are searched on their English name where one exists

    Passed · 24 in all libraries

  • Every language with a main name also has a full name

    Passed

  • Full names are built from their parts in the same language

    Passed

  • Every text is labelled with its real language

    Passed

  • Every description is available for display and translation

    Passed

  • Every usage note is available for display and translation

    Passed

Traceable to the source

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  • Values traced to one source row agree with each other

    Passed

  • No duplicate factors are served

    Passed

  • No factor value claims two things that cannot both be true

    Passed

  • No energy factor answers a question about packaging or recycling

    Passed · 169 in all libraries

  • No factor value the publisher has withdrawn is still served

    Passed · 14,762 in all libraries

Other checks

  • One activity keeps one family across its units

    Passed · 8 in all libraries

  • An activity's grouping key names only the activity

    Passed · 12 in all libraries

  • A Creative Commons credit names its licence

    Passed

  • No note of ours appears in the credit or licence notice

    Passed

  • The credit line carries no terms of use

    Passed

  • Every part links to a valid parent

    Passed

  • Every impact assessment method is a recognised code

    Passed

  • Summed totals keep their parts' classification

    Passed

  • Every summed total has a classification when its parts do

    Passed

  • Green-electricity zeros are not rated below market-based peers

    Passed

  • An avoided credit is linked to the burden it belongs to

    Passed

  • Every value is typed as specific, generic or average

    Passed

  • The market-based value is the default

    Passed

  • Summed totals equal their parts on every gas

    Passed

  • No total is served when one of its parts is withheld

    Passed

  • Validity dates are the publisher's own, never guessed

    Passed

  • Every district-heat factor says whether the network's heat loss is included

    Passed · 2 in all libraries

  • Quality breakdowns use their scheme's axes

    Passed

  • No battery-electric vehicle carries tailpipe emissions

    Passed

  • The text of each estimated electricity total matches its current figures

    Passed

  • Every estimated factor carries its description in each language

    Passed

  • The text of each estimated factor matches its current figures

    Passed

  • A total built on an estimated part is marked as estimated

    Passed

  • Every estimate is built only from data we may redistribute

    Passed

  • No estimated factor is rated above the data it was built from

    Passed

  • No estimate sits beside a total of unclear scope

    Passed

  • No estimate repeats a stage the publisher's total already includes

    Passed

  • Every factor we complete has all of its estimated parts

    Passed · 25 in all libraries

  • No estimate is served where the publisher printed the figure

    Passed

  • We only estimate for publishers whose rule allows it

    Passed

  • Every estimated factor still matches the inputs it was computed from

    Passed

  • No estimated total competes with a published one

    Passed

  • Every factor with a current value has a default

    Passed

  • Every factor has a value, in a library that publishes values

    Passed

  • The text of each fuel supply-chain estimate matches its current figures

    Passed

  • No fuel supply-chain estimate is rated above what its method allows

    Passed

  • Every fuel estimate is built only from data we may redistribute

    Passed

  • Every fuel eligible for a supply-chain estimate is classified

    Passed

  • No fuel estimate is served where the publisher printed the supply-chain figure

    Passed

  • No supply-chain estimate is served for a fuel we deliberately left out

    Passed

  • Every fuel supply-chain estimate still matches the figures it was computed from

    Passed

  • Per-gas values are in CO2e

    Passed

  • Every tagged gas has a known GWP

    Passed

  • Every fixed group of regions lists what it covers

    Passed

  • Where both exist, the residual mix is shown before the green-tariff zero

    Passed

  • Every green-electricity zero is a market-based value

    Passed

  • Every electricity factor states its mix

    Passed

  • The newest edition of each value is the one marked current

    Passed

  • Every publisher has a rule on whether we estimate its missing parts

    Passed

  • Factor descriptions describe the factor, not the whole library

    Passed · 2 in all libraries

  • Every library's licence has its rights recorded

    Passed

  • No fossil electricity mix has a zero fuel supply chain

    Passed

  • Every green-electricity zero is exactly zero and says why

    Passed

  • Green-electricity zeros cover power generation only

    Passed

  • Only a total we computed may mix GWP vintages

    Passed

  • Spend factors state their price year and basis

    Passed

  • One default value per factor and year

    Passed

  • No electricity or heat factor answers network losses against its stage

    Passed · 4 in all libraries

  • Every value has a number, a GWP version and a reference year

    Passed

  • Only a library cleared for it lists factors without their number

    Passed

  • Product footprints headline fossil carbon, like EPDs

    Passed

  • No factor description is too long to display in full

    Passed · 5 in all libraries

  • The library-wide answers on what a factor covers are up to date

    Passed

  • Every library-wide answer applies to at least one factor

    Passed · 3 in all libraries

  • Every excused arithmetic disagreement is stated

    Passed

  • Every reference year falls between 1960 and next year

    Passed

  • Each library's current edition is the one its values come from

    Passed

  • No two editions of a library share a release date

    Passed

  • The parts of a total are never listed twice under one label

    Passed

  • Every residual mix has its green-tariff counterpart

    Passed

  • Every factor points to its top parent

    Passed

  • Every conservative value carries the same label

    Passed

  • Every publisher's quality rating system is read

    Passed

  • Every factor is filed under the most specific category its source allows

    Passed · 4,552 in all libraries

  • Every factor has a category

    Passed

  • Every categorised factor has a GHG Protocol scope

    Passed · 2 in all libraries

  • Single-gas values have their AR6 version

    Passed · 8 in all libraries

  • No factor answers a question that does not arise for it

    Passed · 11 in all libraries

  • No part is larger than the total it belongs to

    Passed

  • A supplier named in the source is linked to the factor

    Passed

  • No factor is an unlinked part of another factor

    Passed

  • A part covering the same scope as its total is linked to it

    Passed

  • Every device total that includes its use also gives the manufacturing share (embodied emissions)

    Passed · 112 in all libraries

  • No plug-in vehicle supply-chain estimate is rated above what its method allows

    Passed

  • A year in a factor's name matches its reference year

    Passed

How the audit works

What can I do with this data?

Open licence · credit the publisher

Your rights

Open licence · cc-by-4.0-fao-db-terms
Use it to calculate my own footprint
Yes
Publish my footprint results
Yes, if
  • you credit the publisher
  • you say what you changed
  • you imply no endorsement by the publisher
Share the file with my customers
Yes, if
  • you credit the publisher
  • you say what you changed
  • you imply no endorsement by the publisher
Put the factors in a product I sell
Yes, if
  • you credit the publisher
  • you say what you changed
  • you imply no endorsement by the publisher
Modify it or combine it with my own data
Yes, if
  • you credit the publisher
  • you say what you changed
  • you imply no endorsement by the publisher

Named licence, checked on 16 Oct 2026

FAOSTAT data are licensed under CC BY 4.0 as complemented by the FAO Statistical Database Terms of Use: CC BY 4.0 §3 requires the credit line and an indication of changes, and the terms add that the data may not be used for or in conjunction with the promotion of a commercial enterprise, nor to suggest FAO endorses a product, nor in a way that falsifies or misrepresents their content. Applied by FAO to the FAOSTAT Emissions intensities domain (faostat); a different text from cc-by-4.0 because of the added clauses.

Credit line

FAO. 2026. FAOSTAT: Emissions intensities. Accessed on 7 October 2026. https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/EI Licence: CC-BY-4.0. Normalised by open-climate.ai, https://open-climate.ai/factors/libraries/faostat/ (CC BY 4.0)

Not legal advice: the publisher's terms prevail.

Full terms

How to read these answers

Coverage

What the library covers, by category and by boundary. Click a slice to drill in, then a sub-category or a boundary to filter the factors below.

By category

Food and agriculture: 2,028
2,028factors

Click a slice to see what is under it. A name opens its category page; its swatch hides it from the ring.

By boundary

Direct only: 2,028
2,028factors

Click a slice to see what is under it. Click a name to hide it from the ring.

Browse factors

top 0 matches

SavedUnfoldFactorRegionBoundary
Unit
VersionPublishedLoadedStatusSource
2026-02-2020 Feb 202617 Oct 2026ServedSource

Methodology

How this works
  • An intensity is the commodity's farm-gate emissions in a country and year, divided by the country's production of it in the same year, in kg CO2e per kg of product. FAO prints the emissions and the production beside each intensity; we keep both with the value.
  • For rice and for cereals other than rice, the emissions counted are nitrous oxide from crop residues, from burning them and from synthetic fertiliser, plus methane from paddy fields for rice. Fertiliser emissions are shared between crops by FAO's 2002 figures on nitrogen use by crop.
  • For meat, milk and eggs, the emissions counted are methane from enteric fermentation and methane and nitrous oxide from manure, whether managed, applied to soils or left on pasture. Where FAO's livestock data does not separate dairy from meat animals (sheep, goats, buffalo, camels), the emissions are split by the share of animals milked.
  • Nothing else is counted: no fuel or electricity used on the farm, no fertiliser manufacture, no feed grown elsewhere, no land-use change, no carbon dioxide. FAO states that these figures should not be compared with life-cycle assessment results.
  • The gases are added up with the global warming potentials of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report over 100 years. FAO prints only the total, not the gases, so we do not restate it under another set of potentials.
  • Milk is raw milk, not corrected for fat and protein. Meat of cattle and pigs is weighed with the bone, as FAO names the item.

Data year: the year of the production and emission statistics the intensity divides, one value per year 1961 to 2023.

What we import

  • 2,037 factors, one per commodity and country or region, carrying 114,717 yearly values from 1961 to 2023. Each year is a value of the same factor; the latest year a series reaches is served by default.
  • The commodities are rice, cereals other than rice, the meat of cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats, pigs and chickens, the milk of cows, buffalo, sheep, goats and camels, and hen eggs.
  • 202 countries and territories, the world, four continents (Africa, Asia, Europe and Oceania), five subregions (South America, Eastern, Southern and South-eastern Asia, Western Europe) and the European Union of 27.
  • Each factor carries an open-climate.ai category (plant or animal products) and, except for the cereals aggregate, the commodity's FAO code and its CPC code. The English names come from FAO; the note that the figure is on-farm methane and nitrous oxide only is written by open-climate.ai.
  • Not imported: 7,453 country and year rows that print emissions or production but no intensity; 2,248 rows for seven areas that no longer exist (such as the USSR and Czechoslovakia), whose successors carry the later years; 882 rows for FAO's "China" total, which only adds up four areas already loaded; and 15,989 rows for 24 FAO groupings with no matching region in our geography, such as the Americas, the Caribbean, the least developed countries and the OECD.

Open. FAOSTAT data are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence as complemented by FAO's Statistical Database Terms of Use. You may hold the values for your own footprint, publish results, share the values with customers, embed them in a product and modify or combine them, with attribution and an indication of changes. The terms add that the data may not be used to promote a commercial enterprise or to suggest that FAO endorses a product, and may not be used in a way that falsifies or misrepresents their content. Attribution: "FAO. 2026. FAOSTAT: Emissions intensities. Accessed on 7 October 2026. https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/EI Licence: CC-BY-4.0." Last verified 2026-10-16.

What can I do with this data?

Credit line: FAO. 2026. FAOSTAT: Emissions intensities. Accessed on 7 October 2026. https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/EI Licence: CC-BY-4.0.

cc-by-4.0-fao-db-terms

Datasets shall not be used for or in conjunction with the promotion of a commercial enterprise and/or its product(s) or services (s), and/or in any way that suggests that FAO endorses any specific company, products or services. Furthermore, you shall not use FAO datasets in a manner that falsifies or misrepresents their content.

Limitations

  • These are partial farm-gate figures: a share of the emissions inside the farm gate, never a footprint. A life-cycle or farm-gate footprint of the same product is always higher; use these figures to compare countries and years, not to account for a product.
  • Where a country, or a region of small producers, produces very little of a commodity, FAO's division can break down: 72 values are below zero and 2,423 are more than ten times the world value of the same commodity and year. We keep them as printed and withhold them, together with 329 values printed as zero, which cannot be true for a commodity that is produced. That is 2,824 values in all.
  • FAO prints no uncertainty. Every other value is rated low quality, for the narrow set of sources counted. How quality tiers are set.
  • One edition is loaded, and FAO revises the back series each year.

Changelog

  • 2026-10-16: edition of 20 February 2026 loaded, 2,037 factors and 114,717 yearly values.

Highlighted factor pages

A selection of FAOSTAT factors, with each value, boundary, source and derivation.

Food and agricultureAnimal products

Know a newer edition?

If FAOSTAT has published an edition we do not serve yet, tell us where to find it.