Author: Ben Slatter
In 2024, data describing crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms were collected for the third consecutive year through the ABARES Horticulture Survey. Crop loss/waste refers to primary production outputs that were intended for human use but ended up either not being harvested, disposed of, or were recovered for alternative uses.
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) commissioned this component of the Horticulture Survey to support their program of work under the 2017 National Food Waste Strategy (the Strategy). The Strategy seeks to halve Australia’s food waste across the food supply chain by 2030. The crop loss/waste survey results presented here aim to fill specific data gaps on food loss and waste in primary production in the horticulture industry, noting fresh produce represents about 50% of the total volume of food waste in Australia. This survey will support an understanding of the extent of the problem, including the causes of crop loss/waste on horticulture farms, and will provide insights into how surplus crops are managed by growers.
By providing a picture of production loss and waste, growers, the food manufacturing industry and the food rescue sector will be better placed to consider opportunities for the recovery of potential lost or wasted produce towards alternative uses. The results of the survey also complement work already underway by End Food Waste Australia to deliver the Strategy, particularly in relation to primary production waste. Beyond this, the survey results will support work being undertaken by Australian governments and industry to transition to a more circular economy under Australia’s Circular Economy Framework (2024).
The crop loss/waste information was collected between June and September 2024 through telephone surveys, conducted on behalf of ABARES by Lighthouse Data Collection. The survey results for 2023–24 are based on a weighted sample of 2,761 horticulture farms across Australia (2022–23: 2,753 farms; 2021–22: 2,692 farms), selected by region and farm size to be representative of the total population of 10,645 farms (2022–23: 11,342 farms; 2021–22: 11,004 farms). Surveyed horticulture farms include fruit, nut and vegetable growers, and nursery and floriculture producers.
Crop loss/waste data visualisation
How to use this data visualisation
- Select from the year and state/territory fields at the top.
- For more information on the results and definitions of items, click the explanatory notes button in the top-right corner.
The PowerBI dashboard may not meet accessibility requirements. For information about the contents of these dashboards contact ABARES.
The average percentage of crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms in 2023–24 was 20%, down from 25% in 2022–23 when production was impacted by heavy rainfall and flooding. However, crop loss/waste again varied significantly depending on crop type, ranging from a high of 37% per farm for mangoes to a low of 8% for pineapples.
While the percentage range of crop loss/waste in 2023–24 was similar to 2022–23 (from a high of 38% to a low of 14%), some crops and regions were impacted differently from previous years
(Figure 1). The mango industry encountered a challenging season with crop loss/waste as high as 40% per farm in Western Australia (compared to 23% in 2022–23), and with Ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper causing tree damage and fruit loss in Far North Queensland. In contrast, citrus crop loss/waste was as low as 7% per farm in South Australia (compared to 20% in 2022–23) amidst improved fruit quality.
Figure 1 Percentage of crop loss/waste per farm, by crop type, 2021–22 to 2023–24
Meanwhile, grape growers in Victoria experienced reasonable conditions which reduced crop loss/waste for dried grapes to 12% per farm, compared to 46% per farm for the disease impacted 2022–23 crop.
Most of the horticultural crop loss/waste in 2023–24 occurred pre-harvest (58% of total loss per farm across all crop types, down from 66% in 2022–23), or during/after harvest (26%, up from 24%). The remainder was recovered for alternative uses (16%, up from 10% in 2022–23), such as compost, animal feed, the sale of secondary products, donation and fuel.
Australian horticulture farms provided information about the causes and fates of their crop loss/waste in 2023–24, with multiple responses allowed per farm. Most farms that experienced crop loss/waste in 2023–24 indicated that weather events were the primary cause of their total crop loss/waste (63% of farms, almost unchanged from 2022–23), with most of this loss occurring pre-harvest and largely due to factors outside of their control (Figure 2). Other reasons for crop loss/waste in 2023–24 included pests and disease (32% of farms, down from 35% in 2022–23), quality not to specification (14%, up from 11%), changing commodity prices (8%, down from 11%), excess production (7%, up from 5%) and a lack of labour availability (4%, down from 7%).
Figure 2 What caused the crop loss/waste (% of farms), 2021–22 to 2023–24
b New category in 2022–23 survey.
Note: Multiple responses allowed per farm.
Source: ABARES
Most horticulture farms indicated that their crop loss/waste in 2023–24 was left on the ground (45% of farms, almost unchanged from 2022–23) or ploughed into the ground (24%, almost unchanged) (Figure 3). Crop loss/waste was also recovered for compost (16% of farms, up from 10% in 2022–23), while other categories were likewise roughly unchanged – disposed of, for example by binning, burning or dumping (13% of farms), recovered for animal feed (11%), recovered for use in other products (3%), buried on farm (3%), recovered for donation (2%, a new category in 2023–24) and recovered for fuel (<1%).
Figure 3 What was done with the crop loss/waste (% of farms), 2021–22 to 2023–24
b New category in 2023–24 survey.
Note: Multiple responses allowed per farm.
Source: ABARES
Agricultural production is inherently risky and horticultural crops are typically more vulnerable to pre-harvest crop loss than other agricultural products. Each year, external events outside the control of farm managers affect the production of horticultural crops, with this production risk being a natural part of Australian agriculture that farmers regularly contend with and factor into their financial decision-making. However, with survey respondents also reporting other economic and supply chain forces as reasons for crop loss, consideration can be given to strategies across the value chain for reducing and recovering waste, thereby increasing efficiencies in the industry. Understanding and addressing efficiencies across different parts of the food supply chain will support Australia’s transition to a circular economy.
Commonwealth of Australia 2017, National Food Waste Strategy: Halving Australia’s food waste by 2030, Canberra, accessed 3 April 2025
DCCEEW 2024, Australia’s Circular Economy Framework, Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Canberra, December, accessed 3 April 2025
Downham, R 2022, Crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms, 2021–22, ABARES, Canberra, December, DOI: 10.25814/4ysb-qv62, accessed 3 March 2025
Slatter, B. 2024, Crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms, 2023–24, ABARES, Canberra, June. DOI: 10.25814/p8dt-3s93, accessed 3 March 2025
- Crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms, 2023–24 (PDF 978 KB)
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- Crop loss/waste on Australian horticulture farms, 2021–22 to 2023–24 – data tables (XLSX 130 KB)
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