Total pesticides use in agriculture in 2021 was 3.54 million tonnes of active ingredients (Mt), a 4 percent increase with respect to 2020, a 11 percent increase in a decade, and a doubling since 1990. Pesticides use per area of cropland in 2021 was 2.26 kg per hectare (kg/ha), an increase of 4 percent with respect to 2020; use per value of agricultural production was 0.86 kg per thousand international dollar (kg/1000 I$) (+2%); and use per person was 0.45 kg per capita (kg/cap) (+3%). Between 1990 and 2021, these indicators increased by 85 percent, 3 percent, and 33 percent, respectively. Brazil was the world's largest user of pesticides in 2021, with 720 kt of pesticides applications for agricultural use, while USA (457 kt) was the second largest user.
Applications per cropland area in 2021 varied widely, from 10.9 kg/hectare in Brazil to 0.8 kg/ha in the Russian Federation. The level in Brazil was about twice as high as in Argentina (5.6 kg/ha) and Indonesia (5.3 kg/ha). Insecticide use in the US has declined by more than half since 1980 (0.6%/yr), mostly due to the near phase-out of organophosphates. In corn fields, the decline was even steeper, due to the switchover to transgenic Bt corn.