Between January and April 2024, Cattle slaughterings rose by 4.6% when compared with the same period in 2023.
In the first four months of the year, Sheep slaughterings decreased by 5.6% on the same period in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in the year to April 2024 increased by 0.8% when compared with the same four months in 2023.
An analysis of the data for April 2024 compared with April 2023 shows that Cattle slaughterings rose by 14.9%.
The number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 17.9% in April 2024 when compared with the same month in 2023.
Pig slaughterings grew by 9% in April 2024 when compared with April 2023.
| Table 1.1: Livestock Slaughterings - April 2024 | |||
| Cattle | Sheep | Pigs | |
| '000 heads | |||
| April 2023 | 134.3 | 249.3 | 250.6 |
| April 2024 | 154.3 | 204.7 | 273.1 |
| % change | |||
| April 2024/2023 | 14.9% | -17.9% | 9.0% |
| Jan-Apr 2024/2023 | 4.6% | -5.6% | 0.8% |
Cattle slaughterings in the year to April 2024 are estimated to be almost 638,000 heads, an increase of more than 28,000 heads (+4.6%) when compared with the same period in 2023.
During the same period in 2024, Sheep slaughterings decreased by approximately 57,000 heads (-5.6%) to just over 954,000 heads when compared with the same four months in 2023.
Pig slaughterings are estimated to be approximately 1.1m heads for January to April 2024, up nearly 9,000 heads (+0.8%) on the same period in 2023.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattle | 637.756 | 609.306 | 637.509 |
| Sheep | 979.124 | 1010.839 | 954.056 |
| Pigs | 1236.665 | 1100.283 | 1108.999 |
The number of Cattle slaughtered in April 2024 increased by over 20,000 heads (+14.9%) to more than 154,000 heads when compared with April 2023.
Sheep slaughterings in April 2024 were approximately 205,000 heads, down by nearly 45,000 heads (-17.9%) when compared with the same month in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in April 2024 rose by almost 23,000 heads (+9%) to approximately 273,000 heads when compared with April 2023.
| X-axis label | Cattle | Sheep | Pigs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2023 | 153.475 | 252.711 | 296.318 |
| Feb 2023 | 156.219 | 222.126 | 255.189 |
| Mar 2023 | 165.328 | 286.653 | 298.182 |
| Apr 2023 | 134.284 | 249.349 | 250.594 |
| May 2023 | 153.832 | 250.324 | 288.265 |
| Jun 2023 | 148.922 | 275.714 | 274.184 |
| Jul 2023 | 144.298 | 248.769 | 261.821 |
| Aug 2023 | 162.138 | 281.767 | 287.852 |
| Sep 2023 | 152.644 | 273.86 | 264.895 |
| Oct 2023 | 174.86 | 277.641 | 271.633 |
| Nov 2023 | 181.631 | 293.386 | 307.246 |
| Dec 2023 | 142.859 | 256.257 | 255.717 |
| Jan 2024 | 166.01 | 259.931 | 298.02 |
| Feb 2024 | 164.049 | 217.391 | 264.56 |
| Mar 2024 | 153.106 | 272.035 | 273.67 |
| Apr 2024 | 154.344 | 204.699 | 273.109 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (28 May 2024) released Livestock Slaughterings April 2024.
Commenting on the release, Mairead Griffin, Statistician in the Agriculture Accounts & Production Section, said: "Cattle slaughterings increased by 14.9% to over 154,000 heads in April 2024 when compared with April 2023. During the same period, the number of Sheep slaughtered decreased by 17.9% to approximately 205,000 heads, while Pig slaughterings rose by 9% to just over 273,000 heads.
Further analysis of the data shows that between January and April 2024, Cattle slaughterings grew by 4.6% to almost 638,000 heads while the number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 5.6% to approximately 954,000 heads. Pig slaughterings increased by 0.8% to just over 1.1m heads over the same four-month period."