Agriculture

• The gross value of Australian agriculture increased 17% to $71 billion in 2020-21
• Improved growing conditions drove the gross value of broadacre crops to $23 billion (up 79%)
• The gross value of livestock disposals and livestock products decreased 5% to 31 billion

• 7.8 million megalitres of water was applied to crops and pastures in 2020-21 (up 37% from 2019-20)

• 1.9 million hectares of agricultural land was irrigated (up 28%)

• 20,700 farms applied water to their land, unchanged from 2019-20

• 387 million hectares of agricultural land, up 3% from 2019-20
• 87,400 agricultural businesses, unchanged from 2019-20
• Total crop area up 21% to 29 million hectares
• 68 million sheep and lambs on farms at 30 June 2021, up 7%
• 22 million beef cattle at 30 June 2021, up 4%

• 2,136 thousand tonnes of canola were produced in Australia in 2019-20 with a farm gate value of $1,207 million dollars.
• Esperance Region (WA), Eyre Peninsula (SA) and Kojonup (WA) were Australia’s largest canola producing Statistical Area 2 regions.
   

In seasonally adjusted terms for the March 2022 quarter:

• Red meat production decreased 2.5%
• Chicken meat production increased 3.2%
• Wool receivals increased by 6.8%
   

• 31.1 million tonnes of sugarcane were produced in 2020.
• 355 thousand hectares were harvested for sugarcane milling.
• 3,830 sugarcane businesses produced sugarcane.

• 7.3 million tonnes of sugarcane were produced in the Burdekin Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2), which is the largest sugarcane producing SA2 in Australia. 

• Lamb slaughter increased by 11.6% compared to May 2020.
• Lamb production increased by 13.6% compared to May 2020.

This publication contains final Gross Value of Irrigated Agricultural Production (GVIAP) estimates for Australia

Information on Australian agricultural businesses management practices, including soil enhancers, fertiliser use, cropping and pasture management