How does Northern America rank for cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area?

Northern America ranks 16th out of 31 groups with data for 2023.

Is cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area rising or falling in Northern America?

Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Northern America data come from?

The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America

Name: Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America
Creator: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)

Northern America: Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area was 0.21 LSU/ha in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)

0.21 LSU/ha

Change on year

down 4.5%

Rank

16th

of 31 groups

All-time high

0.3 LSU/ha

in 1975

All-time low

0.21 LSU/ha

in 1961

Years of data

1961–2023

Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America, 1961–2023

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in LSU/ha.

Analysis

The most recent figure for cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America is 0.21 LSU/ha, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.

That represents a change of down 4.5% on the previous year and unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America peaked at 0.3 LSU/ha in 1975 and was at its lowest, 0.21 LSU/ha, in 1961.

That places Northern America 16th out of 31 groups with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.

Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America, year by year

Annual values for Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America, 1961 to 2023.
Year	LSU/ha	Change
1961	0.21 LSU/ha	—
1962	0.22 LSU/ha	+4.8%
1963	0.23 LSU/ha	+4.5%
1964	0.24 LSU/ha	+4.3%
1965	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1966	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1967	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1968	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1969	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1970	0.25 LSU/ha	+4.2%
1971	0.25 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1972	0.26 LSU/ha	+4.0%
1973	0.27 LSU/ha	+3.8%
1974	0.29 LSU/ha	+7.4%
1975	0.3 LSU/ha	+3.4%
1976	0.29 LSU/ha	-3.3%
1977	0.28 LSU/ha	-3.4%
1978	0.26 LSU/ha	-7.1%
1979	0.25 LSU/ha	-3.8%
1980	0.25 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1981	0.26 LSU/ha	+4.0%
1982	0.26 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1983	0.26 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1984	0.25 LSU/ha	-3.8%
1985	0.25 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1986	0.24 LSU/ha	-4.0%
1987	0.23 LSU/ha	-4.2%
1988	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1989	0.22 LSU/ha	-4.3%
1990	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1991	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1992	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1993	0.23 LSU/ha	+4.5%
1994	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1995	0.24 LSU/ha	+4.3%
1996	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1997	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1998	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
1999	0.24 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2000	0.23 LSU/ha	-4.2%
2001	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2002	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2003	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2004	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2005	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2006	0.24 LSU/ha	+4.3%
2007	0.23 LSU/ha	-4.2%
2008	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2009	0.23 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2010	0.22 LSU/ha	-4.3%
2011	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2012	0.21 LSU/ha	-4.5%
2013	0.21 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2014	0.21 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2015	0.21 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2016	0.21 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2017	0.22 LSU/ha	+4.8%
2018	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2019	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2020	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2021	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2022	0.22 LSU/ha	+0.0%
2023	0.21 LSU/ha	-4.5%

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	0.2333 LSU/ha	0.21 LSU/ha	0.24 LSU/ha	9
1970s	0.27 LSU/ha	0.25 LSU/ha	0.3 LSU/ha	10
1980s	0.245 LSU/ha	0.22 LSU/ha	0.26 LSU/ha	10
1990s	0.232 LSU/ha	0.22 LSU/ha	0.24 LSU/ha	10
2000s	0.231 LSU/ha	0.23 LSU/ha	0.24 LSU/ha	10
2010s	0.215 LSU/ha	0.21 LSU/ha	0.22 LSU/ha	10
2020s	0.2175 LSU/ha	0.21 LSU/ha	0.22 LSU/ha	4

Countries ranked near Northern America

14 Costa Rica 0.91 LSU/ha compare
14 Micronesia 0.16 LSU/ha compare
15 Democratic People's Republic of Korea 0.14 LSU/ha compare
15 New Zealand 0.88 LSU/ha compare
16 India 0.86 LSU/ha compare
16 Melanesia 0.11 LSU/ha compare
17 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 0.08 LSU/ha compare
17 Norway 0.8 LSU/ha compare
17 Puerto Rico 0.8 LSU/ha compare
18 Cabo Verde 0.19 LSU/ha compare
18 Syrian Arab Republic 0.04 LSU/ha compare
19 Democratic Republic of the Congo 0.03 LSU/ha compare
19 Egypt 0.79 LSU/ha compare
19 Japan 0.79 LSU/ha compare

See the full ranking of 241 places →

More environment data for Northern America

Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -2.23 Percentage change (2025)
Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -3.25 Percentage change (2025)
Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Standard Deviation 0.466 °C (2025)
Temperature change 2.49 °C (2025)
Recovered paper — Production 43.74 million t (2024)
Total fibre furnish — Production 92.54 million t (2024)
Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Agricultural Use 14.64 million t (2024)
Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Use per capita 37.99 kg/cap (2024)
Nutrient nitrogen N (total) — Use per area of cropland 75.85 kg/ha (2024)

All data for Northern America →

Frequently asked questions

What is cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America?: Cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America was 0.21 LSU/ha in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
What is the highest cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area recorded in Northern America?: The highest recorded value was 0.3 LSU/ha in 1975.
What is the lowest cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area recorded in Northern America?: The lowest recorded value was 0.21 LSU/ha in 1961.
How does Northern America rank for cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area?: Northern America ranks 16th out of 31 groups with data for 2023.
Is cattle and buffaloes — livestock units per agricultural land area rising or falling in Northern America?: Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Northern America data come from?: The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area in Northern America. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 07 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/stat/cattle-and-buffaloes-livestock-units-per-agricultural-land-area/northern-america/

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About this data

Indicator: Cattle and Buffaloes — Livestock units per agricultural land area
Unit: LSU/ha
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage: 241 places, 13,793 data points, 1961–2023
Last refreshed: 12 August 2026

The Livestock Patterns domain of FAOSTAT contains data on livestock numbers, shares of major livestock species and densities of livestock units in the agricultural land area. Values are calculated using Livestock Units (LSU), which facilitate aggregating information for different livestock types. Data are available by country, with global coverage, for the period 1961 to the most recent year available with annual updates. This methodology applies the LSU coefficients reported in the "Guidelines for the preparation of livestock sector reviews" (FAO, 2011). From this publication, LSU coefficients are computed by livestock type and by country. The reference unit used for the calculation of livestock units (=1 LSU) is the grazing equivalent of one adult dairy cow producing 3000 kg of milk annually, fed without additional concentrated foodstuffs. FAOSTAT agri-environmental indicators on livestock patterns closely follow the structure of the indicators in EUROSTAT.