Between January and June 2024, Cattle slaughterings increased by 0.6% when compared with the same period in 2023.
In the first six months of the year, Sheep slaughterings decreased by 9.7% on the same period in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in the year to June 2024 fell by 1.4% when compared with the same six months in 2023.
An analysis of the data for June 2024 compared with June 2023 shows that Cattle slaughterings contracted by 13.9%.
The number of Sheep slaughtered declined by 19.0% in June 2024 when compared with the same month in 2023.
Pig slaughterings dropped by 10.9% in June 2024 when compared with June 2023.
| Table 1.1: Livestock Slaughterings - June 2024 | |||
| Cattle | Sheep | Pigs | |
| '000 heads | |||
| Jun 2023 | 148.9 | 275.7 | 274.2 |
| Jun 2024 | 128.2 | 223.3 | 244.4 |
| % change | |||
| Jun 2024/2023 | -13.9% | -19.0% | -10.9% |
| Jan-Jun 2024/2023 | 0.6% | -9.7% | -1.4% |
Cattle slaughterings in the year to June 2024 are estimated to be over 917,000 heads, an increase of more than 5,000 heads (+0.6%) when compared with the same period in 2023.
During the same period in 2024, Sheep slaughterings decreased by almost 150,000 heads (-9.7%) to nearly 1.4m heads when compared with the same six months in 2023.
Pig slaughterings are estimated to be approximately 1.6m heads for January to June 2024, down almost 24,000 heads (-1.4%) on the same period in 2023.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattle | 937.118 | 912.06 | 917.422 |
| Sheep | 1468.4824 | 1536.877 | 1387.072 |
| Pigs | 1858.824 | 1662.732 | 1639.008 |
The number of Cattle slaughtered in June 2024 fell by almost 21,000 heads (-13.9%) to over 128,000 heads when compared with June 2023.
Sheep slaughterings in June 2024 were approximately 223,000 heads, down by over 52,000 heads (-19.0%) when compared with the same month in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in June 2024 contracted by nearly 30,000 heads (-10.9%) to approximately 244,000 heads when compared with June 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 | 217.335 | 264.223 |
| Mar 2024 | 153.142 | 272.073 | 273.695 |
| Apr 2024 | 155.003 | 200.537 | 273.185 |
| May 2024 | 150.906 | 213.825 | 285.49 |
| Jun 2024 | 128.233 | 223.324 | 244.369 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (26 July 2024) released Livestock Slaughterings June 2024.
Commenting on the release, Mairead Griffin, Statistician in the Agriculture Accounts & Production Section, said: "Cattle slaughterings decreased by 13.9% to over 128,000 heads in June 2024 when compared with June 2023. During the same period, the number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 19% to approximately 223,000 heads, while Pig slaughterings contracted by 10.9% to over 244,000 heads.
Further analysis of the data shows that between January and June 2024, Cattle slaughterings rose by 0.6% to over 917,000 heads while the number of Sheep slaughtered declined by 9.7% to almost 1.4m heads. Pig slaughterings dropped by 1.4% to over 1.6m heads over the same six-month period."