AgricultureID

Country agriculture profile · Latin America & Caribbean

Argentina

Argentina is a leading exporter of soybean and its processed products, maize, wheat, sunflower, and beef, with production concentrated on the fertile temperate Pampas. The country was an early and widespread adopter of no-till farming, which underpins its rainfed grain and oilseed systems. Extensive grass-fed and feedlot cattle, Patagonian sheep, and irrigated viticulture in the arid west round out a sector strongly oriented toward export markets.

Stable overview + dated statisticsUpdated: 2026-07-12

Farming systems (stable overview)

Climate zones

  • Temperate (Pampas)
  • Humid subtropical (northeast)
  • Semi-arid (west and Gran Chaco)
  • Arid and cold (Patagonia)

Agroecological zones

  • Pampas
  • Gran Chaco
  • Cuyo (Andean foothills)
  • Patagonia

Dominant crop systems

  • Rainfed soybean, maize, wheat, and sunflower on the Pampas, widely under no-till
  • Expanding rainfed grain and oilseed cropping in the northern Chaco
  • Irrigated viticulture and horticulture in Cuyo (Mendoza, San Juan)
  • Irrigated fruit in the northern Patagonian river valleys

Major livestock systems

  • Extensive grass-fed beef cattle on the Pampas
  • Feedlot finishing of cattle
  • Extensive sheep grazing in Patagonia
  • Dairy in the central Pampas

Irrigation: The core Pampas cropping belt is essentially rainfed; irrigation is concentrated in the arid west (Cuyo viticulture) and the Patagonian valleys, where it is essential.

Latest verified data

Each value is the most recent available observation, shown with its own year and unit. Figures are periodically revised — treat them as dated, sourced statistics, not evergreen facts.

Latest available agricultural indicators, with year and unit
IndicatorValueUnitYear
Agricultural land42.44% of land area2023
Arable land14.76% of land area2023
Arable land per person0.89hectares per person2023
Cereal yield4,854.2kg per hectare2024
Cereal production85,727,345.71metric tons2024
Agriculture value added5.81% of GDP2024
Employment in agriculture(est.)7.25% of total employment2024
Fertilizer consumption50.19kg per hectare of arable land2023

Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12

Cereal yield over time

201320192024
Argentina — Cereal yield (kg per hectare). Bars start at zero.
Show data table
Argentina — Cereal yield in kg per hectare by year
Yearkg per hectare
20134,720.5
20144,617.3
20154,983.1
20165,105
20175,317.1
20184,662.9
20195,261.5
20205,139.8
20215,410.4
20224,821.7
20233,992.9
20244,854.2

Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12

Derived indicator

Arable land as a share of agricultural land: 34.8 % of agricultural land (2023)

Derived value — formula arable-share-of-agricultural-land v1.0.0 (calc v1). Inputs: AG.LND.ARBL.ZS (14.8) ÷ AG.LND.AGRI.ZS (42.4). A derived ratio, not an observed statistic. Sensitive to rounding and to differing revision cycles of the two source series; omit rather than extrapolate when a common year is unavailable.

Documented crops & livestock

Agricultural institutions

  • Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA) — National institute for agricultural technology, research, and extension.
  • Servicio Nacional de Sanidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASA) — National agri-food health and quality service.
  • Bolsa de Cereales de Buenos Aires — Grain exchange publishing widely used crop-progress and production estimates.

Data coverage & limitations

Covered by the World Bank WDI snapshots for land, production, yield, economy, inputs, and environment indicators.

  • Statistics are dated, versioned, and periodically revised; always read them with their year and dataset version.
  • National statistical definitions (of agricultural land, farm, and employment) differ from those of other countries, limiting strict cross-country comparison.
  • National output is highly sensitive to interannual rainfall variability on the Pampas and to shifting trade and macroeconomic policy.

Sources

This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.

  1. [1]World Bank Open Data — World Development Indicators (opens in a new tab)

    World Bank

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Agricultural statistics (WDI)

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  2. [2]FAO — Food and Agriculture Organization (opens in a new tab)

    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Global production and food-systems context

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  3. [3]FAOSTAT — FAO statistical database (opens in a new tab)

    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Production, area, and trade statistics

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  4. [4]USDA FAS — Foreign Agricultural Service (opens in a new tab)

    USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: International grain, oilseed, and beef trade estimates

    Type:
    Government agency
    Jurisdiction:
    Global (U.S. perspective)
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12