Small increase in the total area of cereals and oilseed rape compared with five year average

Around 477,000 hectares were used to grow cereals and oilseeds in 2023.  This represents a small increase compared with the five year average, which was 468,000 hectares. 

Cereals have a strong association with the whisky industry. Both barley and wheat, the two biggest crops, are used to make whisky. Barley made up 62 per cent of the total area used to grow cereals and oilseeds in 2023, matching the five year average of 63 per cent. Around 23 per cent of cereal area was used to grow wheat in 2023, again similar to the five year average, where wheat made up 22 per cent of the total cereals and oilseed.

The area used to grow oats has decreased by 20 per cent compared with the five year average. The area used to grow oilseeds increased by 25 per cent. Other crops grown, such as rye and triticale, are still minority crops amounting to around 7,500 hectares in 2023.

Information on cereal area in this section has a gap in 2022 due to the survey being paused in 2022.

Figure 5: Areas of cereals and oilseed rape between 2013 to 2023