Where does most of our iron come from?

November 15, 2025 •

3 min read

According to the Minerals Education Coalition, iron is the cheapest metal and fourth most abundant element in Earth's crust. But for industrial and dietary use, where does most of our iron come from? This guide explores the diverse origins of this essential element, covering the dominant industrial sources and vital dietary forms.

Quick Summary

Most iron is sourced from mining iron ore, with a significant portion also coming from recycling steel. Dietary iron comes in two forms, heme from animal products and non-heme from plants, both essential for biological functions.

Key Points

Iron Ore Mining: Most industrial iron is extracted from iron ore in the Earth's crust, with minerals like hematite and magnetite being the primary sources.
Global Production Hubs: Major producers of iron ore include Australia, Brazil, China, and Russia, which supply raw materials for global steel manufacturing.
Recycling's Importance: Steel recycling is a critical and energy-efficient source of iron, with a significant amount of the world's iron supply coming from repurposed scrap metal.
Dietary Iron Sources: The iron needed by the human body is obtained from food, existing as heme iron (from meat) and non-heme iron (from plants).
Heme vs. Non-Heme Absorption: Heme iron is more readily absorbed by the body compared to non-heme iron, though dietary factors like Vitamin C can improve non-heme absorption.
Blast Furnace Smelting: The process of separating iron from its ore involves heating it in a blast furnace with coke and limestone, producing molten iron.

Iron's Industrial Origins: The Earth's Crust

When considering industrial-scale production, the vast majority of iron comes from iron ore deposits within the Earth's crust. Iron ore is a type of rock that contains a high concentration of iron minerals, such as hematite (Fe2O3) and magnetite (Fe3O4). These ores, often millions of years old and originating from geological formations, are the foundation of global iron production. Large deposits of iron ore are found worldwide, with major mining operations concentrated in countries such as Australia, Brazil, and China.

The Process of Extracting Iron from Ore

Extracting usable iron from ore is a multi-step process that has been refined over centuries. Today's methods, such as open-pit mining, allow for the extraction of huge quantities of ore. This raw material is then transported for processing. The main steps typically include:

Mining: Large-scale excavations in the Earth's surface extract the ore. Explosives are used to fragment the rock, which is then loaded onto trucks for transport.
Crushing and Grinding: The iron ore is crushed and ground into smaller pieces to prepare it for further processing.
Beneficiation: This process, which can include magnetic separation for magnetite ore, upgrades the iron content by removing unwanted minerals.
Smelting: The concentrated ore is heated to extremely high temperatures in a blast furnace along with coke (carbon) and limestone. This process removes oxygen from the ore, yielding molten iron known as 'pig iron'.
Refining to Steel: Most pig iron is then further refined by removing impurities and reducing the carbon content to produce steel, the most widely used form of iron.

The Role of Recycling in the Iron Supply Chain

While mining is the primary source of virgin iron, recycling plays a crucial role in today's iron and steel supply chain. Steel is one of the world's most recycled materials, and scrap metal from discarded products like cars, appliances, and buildings is a significant source of iron. This recycling process is highly efficient and provides several benefits. It conserves natural resources by reducing the need to mine new ore and uses less energy than producing iron from scratch. The scrap metal is melted down in an electric arc furnace and repurposed into new steel products, contributing to a more sustainable industrial cycle. In fact, approximately 90 percent of all metal refined today is iron, with most of it destined for the steel industry.

Our Dietary Sources of Iron

For the human body, the source of iron is fundamentally different, coming from the food we consume. The body does not produce its own iron, so it must be obtained through a balanced diet. Dietary iron exists in two main forms:

Heme Iron: Found in animal-based foods like red meat, poultry, and seafood, this form of iron is more easily and efficiently absorbed by the body.
Non-Heme Iron: This type is found in plant-based foods such as beans, lentils, spinach, nuts, and fortified cereals. Its absorption is less efficient than heme iron and can be influenced by other dietary factors like vitamin C, which enhances absorption, or calcium and coffee, which can inhibit it.

Comparison of Industrial and Dietary Iron


Aspect	Industrial Iron (from Ore)	Dietary Iron (from Food)
Primary Source	Earth's crust (hematite, magnetite)	Plant-based and animal-based foods
Extraction/Processing	Mined, crushed, and smelted in blast furnaces	Absorbed by the body during digestion
Forms	Refined into various grades of steel	Heme (animal) and Non-Heme (plant) iron
Scale	Billions of tonnes annually	Milligrams daily for humans
Purpose	Construction, manufacturing, infrastructure	Oxygen transport (hemoglobin), cellular functions
Absorption Rate	N/A (Industrial process)	Variable (Heme 15-35%, Non-Heme 2-20%)

Conclusion: A Tale of Two Iron Sources

Ultimately, the question of where most of our iron comes from depends on the context—industrial or biological. For our civilization's physical infrastructure, the answer lies predominantly in mining iron ore from the Earth's crust, supported by an increasingly vital recycling industry. For our bodies, the answer is found on our plates, sourced from both animal and plant foods to power essential functions like oxygen transport. Both industrial and dietary sources are critical for sustaining modern life, albeit on drastically different scales and through distinct processes. The dual nature of iron—a ubiquitous geological element and a life-sustaining nutrient—highlights its profound importance in both our natural environment and our daily existence. For further reading, explore the detailed iron ore information provided by Geoscience Australia.

Frequently Asked Questions

The main types of iron ore are massive hematite, which is the most commonly mined, and magnetite, both of which are rocks containing high concentrations of iron minerals.

Usable iron is extracted from ore through a process called smelting. The ore is heated in a blast furnace with coke and limestone, which removes oxygen and impurities, resulting in molten pig iron.

Recycling steel is important because it conserves natural resources and uses less energy than mining and smelting new iron ore. Scrap metal is melted down and reused, providing a significant portion of the global iron supply.

Heme iron is found in animal products like meat and seafood and is easily absorbed by the body. Non-heme iron is found in plant foods and is absorbed less efficiently.

Australia, Brazil, and China are among the largest producers of iron ore in the world, playing a critical role in the global supply of industrial iron.

No, the Earth's core, which is thought to be largely iron, is inaccessible. Our industrial iron supply comes from the more accessible iron ore deposits found in the Earth's crust.

The human body must get iron from food. Dietary sources include heme iron from red meat and non-heme iron from plants like lentils, beans, and fortified cereals.