Between January and August 2024, Cattle slaughterings increased by 0.6% when compared with the same period in 2023.
In the first eight months of the year, Sheep slaughterings decreased by 7.4% on the same period in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered from January to August 2024 rose by 0.3% when compared with the same eight months in 2023.
An analysis of the data for August 2024 compared with August 2023 shows that Cattle slaughterings fell by 6.7%.
The number of Sheep slaughtered contracted by 3.1% in August 2024 when compared with the same month in 2023.
Pig slaughterings declined by 1.6% in August 2024 when compared with August 2023.
| Table 1.1: Livestock Slaughterings - August 2024 | |||
| Cattle | Sheep | Pigs | |
| '000 heads | |||
| Aug 2023 | 162.1 | 281.8 | 287.9 |
| Aug 2024 | 151.3 | 272.9 | 283.3 |
| % change | |||
| Aug 2024/2023 | -6.7% | -3.1% | -1.6% |
| Jan-Aug 2024/2023 | 0.6% | -7.4% | 0.3% |
Cattle slaughterings in the eight months to August 2024 are estimated to be approximately 1.2m heads, an increase of more than 7,000 heads (+0.6%) when compared with the same period in 2023.
During the same period in 2024, Sheep slaughterings declined by almost 153,000 heads (-7.4%) to more than 1.9m heads when compared with the same eight months in 2023.
Pig slaughterings are estimated to be approximately 2.2m heads for January to August 2024, an increase of more than 7,000 heads (+0.3%) on the same period in 2023.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattle | 1251.626 | 1218.496 | 1225.643 |
| Sheep | 2048.9954 | 2067.413 | 1914.518 |
| Pigs | 2449.541 | 2212.405 | 2219.644 |
The number of Cattle slaughtered in August 2024 dropped by almost 11,000 heads (-6.7%) to more than 151,000 heads when compared with August 2023.
Sheep slaughterings in August 2024 were approximately 273,000 heads, down by nearly 9,000 heads (-3.1%) when compared with the same month in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in August 2024 decreased by approximately 5,000 heads (-1.6%) to more than 283,000 heads when compared with August 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 | 271.642 |
| Nov 2023 | 181.631 | 293.386 | 307.246 |
| Dec 2023 | 142.859 | 256.257 | 255.717 |
| Jan 2024 | 166.064 | 259.978 | 298.046 |
| Feb 2024 | 164.074 | 217.306 | 264.223 |
| Mar 2024 | 153.142 | 272.044 | 273.695 |
| Apr 2024 | 154.999 | 200.531 | 273.19 |
| May 2024 | 150.902 | 213.819 | 285.494 |
| Jun 2024 | 127.618 | 221.671 | 244.357 |
| JuL 2024 | 157.588 | 256.231 | 297.299 |
| Aug 2024 | 151.256 | 272.938 | 283.34 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (27 September 2024) released Livestock Slaughterings August 2024.
Commenting on the release, Mairead Griffin, Statistician in the Agriculture Accounts & Production Section, said: "Cattle slaughterings dropped by 6.7% to approximately 151,000 heads in August 2024 when compared with August 2023. During the same period, the number of Sheep slaughtered decreased by 3.1% to 273,000 heads, while Pig slaughterings fell by 1.6% to 283,000 heads.
Further analysis of the data shows that between January and August 2024, Cattle slaughterings grew by 0.6% to approximately 1.2m heads while the number of Sheep slaughtered contracted by 7.4% to more than 1.9m heads. Pig slaughterings increased by 0.3% to approximately 2.2m heads over the same eight-month period."