Global agricultural support reaches record $950 bln

Government support for agriculture across 56 countries reached a record $950 billion in 2025, up 15%, or $121 billion, compared with 2023. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), annual agricultural support averaged $885 billion during 2023–2025, including direct budget payments to producers and market price support measures. As a share of the value of agricultural production, support increased from 17.6% in 2023 to 19.1% in 2025.

Despite the increase in funding, the structure of government assistance remains a concern. Nearly half of agricultural support is provided through measures that can distort competition and international trade. These include market price interventions, subsidies for production inputs and payments linked to output volumes. A significant proportion of these measures is short-term in nature and primarily designed to address immediate economic and market disruptions.

Meanwhile, investment in the long-term development of agriculture remains limited. Countries spend an average of approximately $118 billion annually on agricultural infrastructure, research and innovation. The share of these expenditures in the total value of agricultural production declined from 4.6% in 2000–2002 to 2.4% in 2023–2025. This trend indicates a gradual shift in government priorities away from strategic investment towards supporting producers’ current operations.

Insufficient investment in technological development has been accompanied by a slowdown in global agricultural productivity growth. While total factor productivity in agriculture increased by an average of 1.8% annually during 1991–2000, growth slowed to just 0.8% per year in 2014–2023. This trend poses additional risks to global food security, particularly amid climate change, volatile international markets and rising production costs.

The OECD recommends that governments reconsider their agricultural support policies by gradually reducing producers’ dependence on short-term subsidies and increasing investment in infrastructure, research and modern technologies. Particular attention should be given to improving risk management systems and regularly assessing the effectiveness of government programmes. According to the organisation, redirecting resources towards long-term development would help boost agricultural productivity, strengthen resilience to future crises and reduce the distortive impact of government intervention on global agricultural trade.

Tags: subsidies