Travel to just about any country in the world, and you’ll find farmers who are no-tilling.
Amir Kassam, a professor at the University of Reading in England; Theodor Friedrich, a retired researcher with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; and Rolf Derpsch, a long-time no-till researcher based in South America, authored a paper examining the adoption of no-till worldwide over the 10-year period of 2008-09 through 2018-19.
They found that the number of conservation agriculture acres increased by 244.4 million acres worldwide to a total of 507.6 million acres. The U.S. has the highest number of acres (108.8 million), followed by Brazil with 106.2 million acres and Argentina with 81.3 million acres. The country with the fewest number of acres is Myanmar in Southeast Asia, reporting 49 acres total.
Here’s the comprehensive list of no-till acres (also listed in hectares) by country:
| Country | 2018-19 Hectares | 2018-19 Acres |
| USA | 44,049,000 | 108,847,281 |
| Brazil | 43,000,000 | 106,255,150 |
| Argentina | 32,907,000 | 81,314,842 |
| Australia | 22,927,000 | 56,653,763 |
| Canada | 21,739,000 | 53,718,156 |
| China | 9,000,000 | 22,239,450 |
| Russia | 6,000,000 | 14,826,300 |
| India | 3,500,000 | 8,648,675 |
| Paraguay | 3,158,000 | 7,803,576 |
| Kazakhstan | 3,000,000 | 7,413,150 |
| Bolivia | 1,858,030 | 4,591,285 |
| South Africa | 1,607,080 | 3,971,175 |
| Pakistan | 1,320,000 | 3,261,786 |
| Uruguay | 1,278,000 | 3,158,002 |
| Spain | 1,000,000 | 2,471,050 |
| Ukraine | 900,000 | 2,223,945 |
| France | 720,000 | 1,779,156 |
| Romania | 583,820 | 1,442,648 |
| UK | 562,000 | 1,388,730 |
| Zambia | 552,670 | 1,365,675 |
| Italy | 432,000 | 1,067,494 |
| Poland | 403,180 | 996,278 |
| Belarus | 400,000 | 988,420 |
| New Zealand | 366,000 | 904,404 |
| Slovakia | 365,000 | 901,933 |
| Germany | 352,890 | 872,009 |
| Venezuela | 300,000 | 741,315 |
| Iran | 300,000 | 741,315 |
| Mozambique | 289,000 | 714,133 |
| Ghana | 235,000 | 580,697 |
| Malawi | 211,000 | 521,392 |
| Chile | 180,000 | 444,789 |
| Moldova | 180,000 | 444,789 |
| Honduras | 171,000 | 422,550 |
| Mexico | 149,220 | 368,730 |
| Colombia | 127,000 | 313,823 |
| Finland | 120,000 | 296,526 |
| Uzbekistan | 120,000 | 296,526 |
| Greece | 110,500 | 273,051 |
| Zimbabwe | 100,000 | 247,105 |
| Turkey | 100,000 | 247,105 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 60,000 | 148,263 |
| Portugal | 47,050 | 116,263 |
| Estonia | 42,140 | 104,130 |
| Czech Republic | 40,820 | 100,868 |
| Denmark | 38,500 | 95,135 |
| Azerbaijan | 37,500 | 92,664 |
| Kenya | 33,100 | 81,792 |
| Tanzania | 32,600 | 80,556 |
| Syria | 30,000 | 74,132 |
| Austria | 28,330 | 70,005 |
| Sweden | 26,000 | 64,247 |
| Slovenia | 26,000 | 64,247 |
| Hungary | 24,290 | 60,022 |
| Korea, DPR | 23,000 | 56,834 |
| Lithuania | 19,280 | 47,642 |
| Croatia | 18,540 | 45,813 |
| Netherlands | 17,500 | 43,243 |
| Bulgaria | 16,500 | 40,772 |
| Tunisia | 14,000 | 34,595 |
| Morocco | 12,830 | 31,704 |
| Iraq | 12,000 | 29,653 |
| Latvia | 11,340 | 28,022 |
| Switzerland | 11,020 | 27,231 |
| Sudan | 10,000 | 24,711 |
| Guatemala | 10,000 | 24,711 |
| Madagascar | 9,000 | 22,239 |
| Uganda | 7,800 | 19,274 |
| Malaysia | 7,500 | 18,533 |
| Ethiopia | 7,500 | 18,533 |
| Algeria | 7,000 | 17,297 |
| Philippines | 6,750 | 16,680 |
| Tajikistan | 5,000 | 12,355 |
| Niger | 5,000 | 12,355 |
| El Salvador | 4,050 | 10,008 |
| Ireland | 3,660 | 9,044 |
| Peru | 2,890 | 7,141 |
| DR Congo | 2,060 | 5,090 |
| Lesotho | 2,000 | 4,942 |
| Cameroon | 2,000 | 4,942 |
| Bangladesh | 1,500 | 3,707 |
| Lebanon | 1,200 | 2,965 |
| Vietnam | 1,000 | 2,471 |
| Nepal | 1,000 | 2,471 |
| Burkina Faso | 1,000 | 2,471 |
| Timor Leste | 1,000 | 2,471 |
| Namibia | 800 | 1,977 |
| Swaziland | 800 | 1,977 |
| Cambodia | 500 | 1,236 |
| Laos | 500 | 1,236 |
| Luxemburg | 440 | 1,087 |
| Guinea | 400 | 988 |
| Armenia | 300 | 741 |
| Belgium | 270 | 667 |
| Cyprus | 270 | 667 |
| Rwanda | 250 | 618 |
| Nicaragua | 210 | 519 |
| Jordan | 200 | 494 |
| Burundi | 200 | 494 |
| Georgia | 190 | 469 |
| Sri Lanka | 50 | 124 |
| Myanmar | 20 | 49 |
Related Content
Worldwide No-Till Acres Increase 93% in 10 Years: A recent study finds 507.6 million no-till acres exist worldwide, a massive increase since 2008-09.
What Research & Literature Most Contributed to No-Till’s Adoption?: In September 2021, No-Till Farmer commissioned a project to determine the most significant research and publications that assisted in the understanding and adoption of no-till agriculture worldwide.
Information Revolution Needed to Promote No-Till Worldwide: Increasing worldwide adoption of no-till will require a shift in mindset and a localized approach.
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