Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Stats Can: Corn for grain: the world’s top cereal crop

Stats Can: Corn: Canada's third most valuable crop

     By Marie-Andrée Hamel and Erik Dorff    2014-03-18

Corn for grain: the world’s top cereal crop

When it comes to cereal crop production around the world, corn is king. This may come as a surprise to many. Anyone who has ever seen the endless seas of golden wheat on the Canadian Prairies might think that this lynchpin of Canadian agriculture is the number one cereal crop.

The same might be thought of rice and the landscape of paddies stretching as far as the eye can see across Asia. But instead, the most produced cereal crop worldwide is actually corn (also known as maize), a cereal native to the Americas. It outstrips both rice and wheat in terms of global production (Table 1).

 

Table 1 
World and Canadian production of major grains and oilseeds, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of World and Canadian production of major grains and oilseeds. The information is grouped by Commodity (appearing as row headers), World, Canada, Share of total and World position, calculated using Metric tonnes, Percent and Rank units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Commodity World Canada Share of total World position
metric tonnes percent rank
Maize 885,289,935 10,688,700 1.2 11
Rice, paddy 722,559,584 ... ... ...
Wheat 701,395,334 25,261,400 3.6 7
Soybeans 262,037,569 4,246,300 1.6 7
Barley 133,049,075 7,755,700 5.8 7
Canola 62,546,641 14,164,500 22.6 1
Sorghum 58,583,460 ... ... ...
Millet 27,226,548 ... ... ...
Oats 22,676,189 2,997,100 13.2 2
Rye 13,162,017 194,700 1.5 10
... not applicable
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Maize or corn for grainNote1 is the number one cereal crop worldwide with 885.3 million tonnes produced in 2011 according to the FAONote2. The top producer was the United States with 313.9 million tonnes or 35.5% of global production. The U.S. was followed by China which produced 192.8 million tonnes (21.8% of world production). Canada placed 11th in world production of corn with 10.7 million tonnes of grain corn produced in 2011 (Table 2).

Table 2 
Top grain corn producing nations, 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Top grain corn producing nations. The information is grouped by Rank (appearing as row headers), Country, Production and Share of world production, calculated using Metric tonnes and Percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Rank Country Production Share of world production
metric tonnes percent
  World 885,289,935 100.0
1 United States of America 313,948,610 35.5
2 China, mainland 192,781,000 21.8
3 Brazil 55,660,415 6.3
4 Argentina 23,799,830 2.7
5 Ukraine 22,837,900 2.6
6 India 21,760,000 2.5
7 Mexico 17,635,417 2.0
8 Indonesia 17,629,033 2.0
9 France 15,913,300 1.8
10 Romania 11,717,591 1.3
11 Canada 10,688,700 1.2
12 South Africa 10,360,000 1.2
13 Italy 9,752,592 1.1
14 Nigeria 9,180,270 1.0
15 Hungary 7,992,000 0.9
16 Philippines 6,971,221 0.8
17 Russian Federation 6,962,440 0.8
18 Egypt 6,876,473 0.8
19 Serbia 6,479,564 0.7
20 Ethiopia 6,069,413 0.7
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, data accessed February 13, 2014.

In Canada, over 32,300 farms reported planting 1.63 million hectares of corn (corn for grain, corn for silage and sweet corn) according to the 2011 Census of Agriculture. The value of farm cash receipts for grain corn alone reached $2.08 billion in 2011, ranking it as the third most valuable crop in Canada, after canola and wheat.Note3

Views: 115

Comment

You need to be a member of Ontario Agriculture to add comments!

Join Ontario Agriculture

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Canadian Grain and Pork Sectors Join Others in Sound Alarm Over AAFC Research Cuts

Three major Canadian agriculture groups are calling for urgent clarity after AAFC announced staffing cuts and research facility closures.

Agriculture and Baking Groups Push Back After Florida Flags Glyphosate in Bread

In response to release of Florida glyphosate break information, national wheat, milling, and baking groups emphasized that U.S. bread remains safe and urged regulators to rely on consistent, science-based national standards rather than isolated testing.

Now Hiring: Agronomy Manager

Saskatchewan Pulse Growers (SPG) is a development board for the dynamic and growing pulse crop industry. Accountable to and funded by the over 15,000 pulse growers in the province, we provide leadership and work to create opportunities for profitable growth of the Saskatchewan pulse industry by investing in research, market development, communications, and agronomy extension. At SPG, we see diversity as an asset and strive to make our work and our organization inclusive. We are committed to ensuring equal opportunities and an inclusive environment where everyone feels they can bring their whole self to work. We are currently seeking someone to complement our existing Agronomy Manager position through providing expertise and leadership on pulse crop agronomy with specific focus on chickpeas, dry beans, and lentils and by leading the development, execution, and extension of the on-farm trial program as well as the surveillance and monitoring programs. Agronomy Manager This dynamic ful

North Shore submarine cable now in service: TELUS strengthens communications service resilience east of Baie-Comeau

TELUS today announced the successful deployment and commissioning of its nearly 125-kilometre submarine fibre optic cable connecting Sept-Îles to Sainte-Anne-des-Monts. This critical infrastructure, which was deployed and buried in the seabed of the St. Lawrence River in November and December 2025, provides essential redundancy to the telecommunications network serving communities east of Baie-Comeau. This major project was made possible through a joint investment of more than $20 million from TELUS and the Government of Canada. "The completion of this state-of-the-art submarine infrastructure marks a historic moment for citizens along the North Shore – a region that has long faced connectivity challenges due to its remote location and vast, rugged landscape. Moreover, this important initiative demonstrates our TELUS team's unwavering commitment to enhancing the resilience of our digital infrastructure in communities across the country," said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO, TELUS

TELUS achieves its 100% renewable and low-emitting electricity target

TELUS Corporation is the first Canadian telecom to achieve its target of sourcing 100% of electricity for their global operations from renewable or low-emitting sources as of December 31, 2025. Building on this milestone, TELUS unveiled its new Climate Transition Framework, a comprehensive roadmap to reach net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040 while helping to enable Canada's own transition to a low-carbon economy. "At TELUS, we believe that business success and environmental stewardship go hand in hand. Our achievement of our 2025 target to source 100% of electricity from renewable or low-emitting sources is a reflection of our team's unparalleled commitment to improving the health of the planet in combination with enabling a more robust economy," said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO of TELUS. "As a further demonstration of our global leadership and continued focus on creating a more sustainable world, TELUS is investing in nature-accretive solutions that support ecosys

© 2026   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service