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Between January and October 2024, Cattle slaughterings increased by 2.4% when compared with the same period in 2023.
In the first 10 months of the year, Sheep slaughterings decreased by 6.4% on the same period in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered from January to October 2024 went up by 1.5% when compared with the same 10 months in 2023.
An analysis of the data for October 2024 compared with October 2023 shows that cattle slaughterings grew by 6.9%.
The number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 7.5% in October 2024 when compared with the same month in 2023.
Pig slaughterings rose by 8.3% in October 2024 compared with October 2023.
| Table 1.1: Livestock Slaughterings - October 2024 | |||
| Cattle | Sheep | Pigs | |
| '000 heads | |||
| Oct 2023 | 174.9 | 277.6 | 271.6 |
| Oct 2024 | 186.9 | 257.0 | 294.2 |
| % change | |||
| Oct 2024/2023 | 6.9% | -7.5% | 8.3% |
| Jan-Oct 2024/2023 | 2.4% | -6.4% | 1.5% |
Cattle slaughterings in the 10 months to October 2024 are estimated to be approximately 1.6m heads, an increase of almost 37,000 heads (+2.4%) when compared with the same period in 2023.
During the same period in 2024, Sheep slaughterings contracted by almost 167,000 heads (-6.4%) to approximately 2.5m heads when compared with the same 10 months in 2023.
Pig slaughterings are estimated to be approximately 2.8m heads for January to October 2024, a rise of almost 41,000 heads (+1.5%) on the same period in 2023.
| X-axis label | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattle | 1590.415 | 1546 | 1582.572 |
| Sheep | 2636.9094 | 2618.914 | 2452.099 |
| Pigs | 3031.644 | 2748.942 | 2789.464 |
The number of Cattle slaughtered in October 2024 rose by approximately 12,000 heads (+6.9%) to almost 187,000 heads when compared with October 2023.
Sheep slaughterings in October 2024 were approximately 257,000 heads, down by 21,000 heads (-7.5%) when compared with the same month in 2023.
The number of Pigs slaughtered in October 2024 grew by approximately 23,000 heads (+8.3%) to more than 294,000 heads when compared with October 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 | 155.008 | 200.506 | 273.184 |
| May 2024 | 150.915 | 214.655 | 287.18 |
| Jun 2024 | 127.637 | 221.513 | 245.527 |
| JuL 2024 | 157.65 | 256.412 | 297.316 |
| Aug 2024 | 151.042 | 275.788 | 282.796 |
| Sep 2024 | 170.099 | 276.946 | 273.325 |
| Oct 2024 | 186.941 | 256.951 | 294.172 |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (28 November 2024) released Livestock Slaughterings October 2024.
Commenting on the release, Mairead Griffin, Statistician in the Agriculture Accounts & Production Section, said: "Cattle slaughterings grew by 6.9% to 187,000 heads in October 2024 when compared with October 2023. During the same period, the number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 7.5% to 257,000 heads, while Pig slaughterings rose by 8.3% to 294,000 heads.
Further analysis of the data shows that between January and October 2024, Cattle slaughterings increased by 2.4% to approximately 1.6m heads while the number of Sheep slaughtered fell by 6.4% to almost 2.5m heads. Pig slaughterings went up by 1.5% to approximately 2.8m heads over the same 10 month period."