Food imports (% of merchandise imports) in Middle income
Middle income: Food imports (% of merchandise imports) was 8.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Food imports in Middle income, 1984–2025
Source: Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division. Measured in % of merchandise imports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for food imports in Middle income is 8.3%, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 7.9% on the previous year and up 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, food imports in Middle income peaked at 10.7% in 1984 and was at its lowest, 5.7%, in 2006.
Middle income ranks 39th of 47 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 38 years of available data.
Food imports (% of merchandise imports) in Middle income, year by year
| Year | % of merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 10.7% | — |
| 1985 | 8.3% | -22.4% |
| 1986 | 8.2% | -1.3% |
| 1987 | 9.1% | +10.3% |
| 1992 | 6.9% | -23.6% |
| 1993 | 5.9% | -15.7% |
| 1994 | 7.1% | +21.7% |
| 1995 | 8.1% | +13.9% |
| 1996 | 8.3% | +1.7% |
| 1997 | 7.7% | -6.5% |
| 1998 | 7.8% | +1.2% |
| 1999 | 7.5% | -3.5% |
| 2000 | 6.8% | -10.3% |
| 2001 | 7.0% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 6.9% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 7.1% | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 6.6% | -7.4% |
| 2005 | 5.9% | -10.8% |
| 2006 | 5.7% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | +14.6% |
| 2008 | 6.7% | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 7.3% | +8.6% |
| 2010 | 7.0% | -4.1% |
| 2011 | 7.4% | +5.7% |
| 2012 | 7.3% | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 7.5% | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 7.7% | +3.2% |
| 2015 | 8.2% | +6.5% |
| 2016 | 8.9% | +7.5% |
| 2017 | 8.6% | -2.4% |
| 2018 | 7.9% | -9.2% |
| 2019 | 8.3% | +5.5% |
| 2020 | 9.7% | +16.7% |
| 2021 | 9.3% | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 9.2% | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 9.5% | +3.1% |
| 2024 | 9.0% | -4.6% |
| 2025 | 8.3% | -7.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 9.1% | 8.2% | 10.7% | 4 |
| 1990s | 7.4% | 5.9% | 8.3% | 8 |
| 2000s | 6.6% | 5.7% | 7.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.9% | 7.0% | 8.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.2% | 8.3% | 9.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle income
More private sector data for Middle income
- Merchandise trade 41.5% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 59.9% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 8.18 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 1.87 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 9.5% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 74.3% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 8.73 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 1.78 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 1,449 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2138 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is food imports in Middle income?
- Food imports in Middle income was 8.3% in 2025, according to Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division.
- What is the highest food imports recorded in Middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 10.7% in 1984.
- What is the lowest food imports recorded in Middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.7% in 2006.
- How does Middle income rank for food imports?
- Middle income ranks 39th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is food imports rising or falling in Middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Middle income data come from?
- The figures come from Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division, published as part of Food imports (% of merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 38 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Food comprises the commodities in SITC (Rev. 3) sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels). This indicator is expressed as a percentage of merchandise imports which is comprised of goods whose economic ownership is changed between a non-resident and a resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e.