In June 2024, the total number of Sheep decreased by 498,700 (-8.8%) to 5,175,700 Sheep from June 2023.
Breeding Sheep fell by 364,400 (-11.9%) to 2,685,200 when compared with June 2023.
Cattle 2 years and over increased to 812,000 (+2.6%) from 791,300 over the 12 months since June 2023.
The number of Breeding Pigs rose by 7,200 (+4.9%) to 152,800 in June 2024 when compared with June 2023.
The area under Total Cereals fell by 10,200 hectares (ha) (-3.7%) to 262,200 ha in the 12 months to June 2024.
The area under Potatoes rose by 1,000 ha in June 2024 to 9,300 ha (+12.7%) in comparison with June 2023.
| X-axis label | Percentage Change |
|---|---|
| Total Cereals | -3.7 |
| Total Cattle | -2.2 |
| Total Sheep | -8.8 |
| Total Pigs | 1.1 |
Preliminary estimates for June 2024 show a 10,200 ha (-3.7%) reduction in the area under Total Cereals, bringing the total to 262,200 ha compared with June 2023. This decline is driven by a significant decrease (-19.9%) in the area devoted to the three main Winter Cereals, despite an 8.1% growth in the area for the three main Spring Cereals.
Winter Wheat, Winter Oats and Winter Barley were down by 10,500 ha (-20.5%), 2,500 ha (-25.5%) and 9,700 ha (-18.3%) respectively. The area under Spring Wheat rose by 2,500 ha (+55.1%), Spring Oats was up by 5,100 ha (+29.6%) with Spring Barley also increasing by 5,000 ha (+3.7%).
The area under Potatoes was up by 1,000 ha (+12.7%) to 9,300 ha.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Wheat | 60.4 | 51.2 | 40.7 |
| Spring Wheat | 6.8 | 4.6 | 7.1 |
| Winter Oats | 15.2 | 10 | 7.5 |
| Spring Oats | 13 | 17.2 | 22.3 |
| Winter Barley | 73.8 | 52.9 | 43.2 |
| Spring Barley | 116.5 | 133.4 | 138.4 |
| Potatoes | 8.5 | 8.2 | 9.3 |
The total Cattle number was down by 158,300 (-2.2%) to 7,183,100.
The number of Dairy Cows decreased by 22,700 (-1.4%) while the number of Other Cows dropped by 46,800 (-5.4%).
The total number of Cattle less than 2 years decreased by 112,200 (-2.8%). The number of Cattle aged 2 years and over increased by 20,700 (+2.6%).
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dairy Cows | 1627.3 | 1646.6 | 1624 |
| Other Cows | 913.2 | 872.1 | 825.3 |
| Cattle under 1 | 2134.4 | 2074.2 | 2026.4 |
| Cattle 1-2 yrs | 1937.7 | 1910.8 | 1846.4 |
| Cattle 2 yrs+ | 735.2 | 791.3 | 812 |
The June 2024 results show that the total number of Sheep decreased in the last 12 months by 498,700 (-8.8%) to 5,175,700.
Breeding Sheep dropped by 364,400 (-11.9%) and Other Sheep (non-breeding sheep) fell by 134,300 (-5.1%).
Ram numbers also dropped by 10.5% to 82,800 between June 2023 and June 2024.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total sheep | 5967.594 | 5674.4 | 5175.7 |
| Breeding sheep | 3053.959 | 3049.6 | 2685.2 |
| Ewes: 2 years and over | 2320.072 | 2378.5 | 2103.5 |
| Ewes: under 2 years | 650.345 | 578.7 | 498.9 |
| Rams | 83.542 | 92.4 | 82.8 |
| Other sheep | 2913.635 | 2624.8 | 2490.5 |
The total number of Pigs in Ireland in June 2024 increased by 1.1% to 1,679,900 when compared with June 2023.
Breeding Pig numbers were up by 7,200 (+4.9%) to 152,800. The number of Gilts in Pig and Gilts not yet served rose by 1,200 (+5.7%) and 1,800 (+9.6%) respectively. The number of Other Sows for breeding increased to 34,500 from 30,200 (+14.2%).
The number of Other Pigs (non-breeding pigs) were up by 11,400 (+0.7%) to 1,527,100. Pigs 20kg and under 50kg grew by 14,300 to 429,400 (+3.4%) while Pigs 20kg and under dropped by 8,300 (-2%).
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| <20kg | 409 | 413.5 | 405.2 |
| 20-50kg | 423.1 | 415.1 | 429.4 |
| 50-80kg | 326 | 324.3 | 329.5 |
| >80kg | 339.5 | 362.8 | 363 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (09 October 2024) published provisional findings for Crops and Livestock 2024. Commenting on the provisional data, Nele van der Wielen, Statistician in the Agriculture Surveys Section of the CSO, said:
"Preliminary estimates for June 2024 show that:
Sheep
The number of Sheep decreased by 8.8%. The number of Rams fell by 9,700 (-10.5%) to 82,800. The figure for Breeding Sheep was down by 11.9% while the number of Other Sheep decreased by 5.1%.Cattle
The number of Dairy Cows dropped by 22,700, bringing the total to 1,624,000. Cattle under two years of age were down by 2.8%, whereas those two years and older increased by 2.6%.Pigs
In June 2024, the total pig population in Ireland grew to 1,679,900, a 1.1% rise compared with June 2023. The number of Breeding Pigs increased by 7,200 (+4.9%) to 152,800. Non-breeding pigs also saw a modest rise of 11,400 (+0.7%), reaching a total of 1,527,100.Crops
The area under total cereals decreased by 10,200 ha (-3.7%) to 262,200 ha when compared with June 2023. The area under Wheat and Barley went down by 14.3% and 2.5% respectively. Oats increased by 9.4% to 29,800. The area under Potatoes rose by 12.7%."