| Livestock Numbers | |||
| Cattle | Sheep | Pigs | |
| '000 | |||
| 2011 | 5,925.3 | 3,321.3 | 1,552.9 |
| 2012 | 6,253.2 | 3,430.3 | 1,493.0 |
| % change | +5.5% | +3.3% | -3.9% |
The results of the December 2012 livestock survey show that the total number of cattle was 6,253,200 an increase of 327,900 (+5.5%) on December 2011. This was mainly due to increases in male cattle 1 to 2 years (+17.0%), male cattle under 1 year (+9.5%) and female cattle 1 to 2 years (+8.4%). See Table 1.
The total number of sheep increased by 109,000 (+3.3%) to 3,430,300. This was due to increases of 56,900 (+7.1%) in other sheep, 57,100 (+3.0%) in ewes 2 years and over and 2,000 (+2.7%) in rams. See Table 2.
The total number of pigs in December 2012 was 1,493,000, a drop of 3.9% since December 2011. The number of non-breeding pigs decreased by 57,400 (-4.1%) and breeding pigs decreased by 2,600 (-1.7%). See Table 3.
| Table 1 Number of Cattle | |||||
| Description | December 2010 | December 2011 | December 2012 | Change 2011 - 2012 | |
| ' 000 | ' 000 | % | |||
| Total cattle | 5,917.7 | 5,925.3 | 6,253.2 | 327.9 | 5.5 |
| Dairy cows1 | 1,006.9 ³ | 1,035.6 ³ | 1,060.3 | 24.6 | 2.4 |
| Other cows | 1,090.8 ³ | 1,083.0 ³ | 1,127.9 | 44.9 | 4.1 |
| Bulls2 | 42.5 | 35.0 | 38.8 | 3.8 | 10.9 |
| Cattle male: 2 years and over | 248.9 | 174.9 | 160.2 | -14.7 | -8.4 |
| Cattle female: 2 years and over | 313.8 | 287.1 | 262.6 | -24.5 | -8.5 |
| Cattle male: 1-2 years | 691.4 | 629.7 | 736.9 | 107.2 | 17.0 |
| Cattle female: 1-2 years | 828.8 | 812.0 | 880.0 | 68.0 | 8.4 |
| Cattle male: under 1 year | 786.0 | 902.0 | 987.6 | 85.6 | 9.5 |
| Cattle female: under 1 year | 908.6 | 966.0 | 999.0 | 33.1 | 3.4 |
| Total cattle male | 1,768.8 | 1,741.5 | 1,923.4 | 181.8 | 10.4 |
| Total cattle female | 4,148.9 | 4,183.8 | 4,329.9 | 146.1 | 3.5 |
| 1 Dairy cows are those kept principally to produce milk for human consumption. | |||||
| 2 Bulls used for breeding purposes only. | |||||
| 3 Revised. | |||||
| Table 2 Number of Sheep | |||||
| Description | December 2010 | December 2011 | December 2012 | Change 2011 - 2012 | |
| ' 000 | ' 000 | % | |||
| Total sheep | 3,122.0 | 3,321.3 | 3,430.3 | 109.0 | 3.3 |
| Breeding sheep | 2,419.1 | 2,524.2 | 2,576.3 | 52.1 | 2.1 |
| Ewes: 2 years and over | 1,893.1 | 1,932.0 | 1,989.1 | 57.1 | 3.0 |
| Ewes: under 2 years | 457.3 | 518.8 | 511.8 | -6.9 | -1.3 |
| Rams | 68.7 | 73.4 | 75.4 | 2.0 | 2.7 |
| Other sheep | 702.8 | 797.1 | 854.0 | 56.9 | 7.1 |
| Table 3 Number of Pigs | |||||
| Description | December 2010 | December 2011 | December 2012 | Change 2011 - 2012 | |
| ' 000 | ' 000 | % | |||
| Total pigs | 1,500.4 | 1,552.9 | 1,493.0 | -60.0 | -3.9 |
| Breeding pigs | 150.9 | 147.7 | 145.1 | -2.6 | -1.7 |
| Gilts in pig | 19.1 | 18.2 | 20.7 | 2.5 | 14.0 |
| Sows in pig | 89.4 | 88.9 | 82.6 | -6.4 | -7.1 |
| Other Sows for breeding | 25.9 | 23.4 | 25.7 | 2.3 | 9.9 |
| Gilts not yet served1 | 15.0 | 15.9 | 15.2 | -0.7 | -4.7 |
| Boars | 1.4 | 1.2 | 0.9 | -0.3 | -26.4 |
| Other pigs | 1,349.6 | 1,405.3 | 1,347.9 | -57.4 | -4.1 |
| Pigs 80kg and over | 248.9 | 219.7 | 228.8 | 9.1 | 4.1 |
| Pigs 50kg and under 80kg | 295.6 | 335.0 | 298.7 | -36.3 | -10.8 |
| Pigs 20kg and under 50kg | 399.3 | 402.7 | 412.6 | 10.0 | 2.5 |
| Less than 20kg | 405.7 | 447.9 | 407.7 | -40.2 | -9.0 |
| 1 Gilts of at least 50kg liveweight intended for breeding but not yet served. | |||||
Coverage Farms where the agricultural area used was at least one hectare (2.47 acres) are included in the December Livestock Sample Survey. Farms with less than one hectare may also be included if they were engaged in intensive production.
Definition A farm is defined in accordance with the definition adopted for the EU surveys as
a single unit, both technically and economically, which has a single management
and which provides agricultural products.
Results
Cattle: The results for cattle are obtained from Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine (DAFM) Animal Identification and Movement (AIM) system. This system was introduced at the beginning of 2000 and involves electronically recording data on animal movements. Information on cattle numbers and on flows into and out of the cattle population has been available from this system since December 2002.
Sheep: The December 2012 results for sheep are based on the trends obtained by comparing the returns from the December 2012 sample with the 2011 returns for the same 7,900 farms and applying these trends to the December 2011 figures.
Pigs: A specialist pig survey was conducted by the CSO due to the intensive nature of this activity.
Precision As the figures in the text have been rounded to the nearest 100 units there may be slight discrepancies between the sum (or difference) of the constituent items and the total shown. Percentage changes have been calculated on actual figures.
Hide Background Notes
Scan the QR code below to view this release online or go to
http://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/er/lsd/livestocksurveydecember2012/
Show Table 1 Number of Cattle
Hide Table 1 Number of Cattle