The UN Food and Agriculture Organization's latest FAOSTAT release covers farm output up to 2024. We used it to rank countries for five farm products: tobacco, dates, mushrooms, oranges and wool. Each has its own chart with the full country list.
Mushrooms: one country, almost the whole total
China produced 48,607.2 thousand tonnes of mushrooms, 94.2% of the world's 51.6 million tonnes. Japan was a distant second with 494.8 thousand tonnes. China's figure is an FAO imputation, so the world total depends on it. See the mushroom chart.
Tobacco: down 16.1% in ten years
The world grew 6.0 million tonnes of tobacco leaf in 2024, 16.1% less than in 2014. China led with 2,256.4 thousand tonnes, ahead of India and Brazil. See the tobacco chart.
Dates: up 34.5% since 2014
Date production reached 9.9 million tonnes. Saudi Arabia led with 1,927.6 thousand tonnes, followed by Egypt and Algeria. Most date figures in FAOSTAT are FAO's own imputations rather than national data, so single-year changes should be read with care. See the dates chart.
Oranges: Brazil far ahead, but by how much depends on the source
Brazil grew 15,688.4 thousand tonnes of oranges, about twice China's 7,620.0 thousand tonnes. World production, 67.2 million tonnes, was almost exactly where it was in 2014. The US Department of Agriculture puts Brazil's 2024/25 crop lower, at 13,000 thousand tonnes, while its figure for China matches FAO's. See the orange chart.
Wool: 16.3% less than in 2014
The world shore 1.7 million tonnes of greasy wool. China led with 364.5 thousand tonnes, ahead of Australia with 281.0 thousand tonnes and New Zealand with 125.0 thousand tonnes. Australia and New Zealand both produced less than in any year since at least 2014. See the wool chart.
Summary
| Product | World 2024 | Top producer | Its share | World vs 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tobacco | 6.0 million tonnes | China | 37.3% | -16.1% |
| Dates | 9.9 million tonnes | Saudi Arabia | 19.4% | +34.5% |
| Mushrooms | 51.6 million tonnes | China | 94.2% | +45.9% |
| Oranges | 67.2 million tonnes | Brazil | 23.3% | -0.2% |
| Wool (greasy) | 1.7 million tonnes | China | 21.5% | -16.3% |
About the data
All figures are FAOSTAT production data (crops and livestock products, element "Production"), in tonnes. FAO flags each value as official, estimated, imputed or taken from another international source; each chart's Limits paragraph says how many of its figures are not official. China means mainland China. We checked oranges against the USDA's production database. We also planned a chart on olives but dropped it: FAOSTAT has no 2024 figure yet for Greece, which grew 2.5 million tonnes in 2023, more than third-placed Italy grew in 2024. For meat, eggs and honey from the same release, see our earlier post on livestock production.