Did you know tomatoes are by far the leading vegetable worldwide by volume produced?

Vegetables are one of the basics of human nutrition. The global amount of vegetables harvested is massive, over 1.1 billion metric tons per year. That’s equal to 16 million copies of one of the world’s largest cruise ships, the Queen Mary 2.

Did you also know?

  • Global average vegetable production between 2001 and 2010 was 54% higher than the average of the preceding decade (1991-2000). And over 75% of this production increase took place in Asia.
  • China alone is responsible for some 160 million metric tons of vegetable production.
  • The United States has 613 million acres of grazing land for livestock. Some 2.7 million acres are used for growing vegetables. The production of this acreage is valued at around 12 billion U.S. dollars.
  • By 2050 the world’s population will likely have increased by 35%, from 7 billion to 9.5 billion. In order to feed everyone, we need to double our crop production, from 9.5 billion to 19 billion tonnes.
  • The average American uses about 286 pounds of fresh and processed vegetables per year.
  • 28% of adults in the U.S. somewhat support the usage of GM crops, while 22% strongly oppose this method.
  • Nearly three fifths of U.S. consumers buy fresh vegetables weekly, while a quarter of them purchase fresh produce multiple times a week.
  • Around 7% of all produced vegetables are frozen. The average U.S. consumer spends about 35 U.S. dollars on frozen vegetables every year.

Source: Statista

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Photo: Pieter Musterd