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For more information on this release:
E-mail: agri@cso.ie Sophie Emerson (+353) 21 453 5453 Carmel Hinchion (+353) 21 453 5272
For general information on CSO statistics:
information@cso.ie (+353) 21 453 5000 On-line ISSN 1393-7278
CSO statistical release, , 11am

Crops and Livestock Survey June Final Results

June 2019

   Total Cereals  Cattle   Sheep
     '000 hectares(ha)  
     '000      '000
June 2018261.67,348.55,109.3
June 2019267.77,208.65,145.8
% change+2.3-1.9+0.7

Number of Cattle down 139,900 (-1.9%) in June 2019

Figure 1 CLSJF2019 - Percentage change in selected items June 2018/2019
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The final results for June 2019 show that the total number of cattle decreased by 139,900 (-1.9%) to 7,208,600 when compared to June 2018. The total number of male cattle decreased by 112,000 (-4.8%) while the total number of female cattle decreased by 27,900 (-0.6%). See Table 2.

The total number of male cattle under 1 year decreased by 58,500 (-5.9%) and the total number of female cattle under 1 year decreased by 11,800 (-1.1%). See Table 2. 

A comparison with the June 2018 results show that:

  • Pig numbers decreased by 6,000 (-0.4%) to 1,616,000. Breeding pigs decreased by 5,300 (-3.6%) and other pigs decreased by 600. See Table 2.
  • Sheep numbers rose by 36,500 (+0.7%) to 5,145,800. Breeding sheep decreased by 69,000 (-2.7%) to 2,496,500 while other sheep rose by 105,400 (+4.1%) to 2,649,300. See Table 2. 

The area under cereals increased by 6,100 hectares (ha) (+2.3%) to 267,700 ha.  The area under wheat increased by 5,500 ha (+9.5 %). The area under oats increased by 6,000 ha (+34%). The area under barley decreased by 5,800 ha (-3.2%). See Table 1.

A regional analysis of the livestock numbers shows that the largest number of cattle (1,438,900) was in the South-West region, the largest number of sheep (1,428,600) was in the West region and the largest number of pigs (434,700) was in the Border region. See Tables 4 and 5.

From the 1st January 2018 an Amendment of the EU NUTS legislation came into effect. This reflects the new regional assembly structure and other changes to the Local Government Act for Tipperary North, Tipperary South and Limerick and Waterford City and Councils. For the composition of the new Regions breakdown and further information see background notes.

Pasture and rough grazing values for 2017 have been revised due to consistency checks with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine's Basic Payment Scheme.
X-axis labelCattleSheep
Border799.4891039.3
West936.2361428.6
Mid-West1425.561226.7
South-East1034.916549.4
South-West1438.856700
Mid-East & Dublin713.089905.4
Midland860.473296.3
X-axis label% Change
Winter wheat9.6
Spring wheat7.2
Winter oats63.1
Spring oats-5.1
Winter barley43.2
Spring barley-24.2
Potatoes5.4
Table 1 Area under Crops and Pasture
DescriptionJune 2017June 2018June 2019   Change 2018 - 2019
' 000 hectares' 000 hectares%
Wheat - total67.058.063.55.59.5
  Winter wheat60.354.459.75.29.6
  Spring wheat6.83.63.80.37.2
      
Oats - total24.417.823.86.034.0
  Winter oats14.410.216.66.463.1
  Spring oats10.07.67.2-0.4-5.1
      
Barley - total180.2185.2179.4-5.8-3.2
  Winter barley65.057.982.825.043.2
  Spring barley115.2127.496.5-30.8-24.2
      
Other cereals0.80.61.00.461.1
      
Total cereals272.4261.6267.76.12.3
      
Beans and peas13.78.58.1-0.4-4.3
Oilseed rape10.110.69.2-1.4-12.9
Arable silage2.93.32.7-0.6-17.5
Maize silage11.917.816.6-1.1-6.4
Fodder rape and kale1.61.51.2-0.3-22.3
Potatoes9.28.28.70.45.4
Turnips0.80.90.8-0.1-10.5
Beet 110.011.39.9-1.4-12.5
Vegetables for sale3.63.63.60.00.4
Fruit0.80.80.80.0-1.3
Nurseries, horticulture etc.0.50.50.50.0-2.0
Other crops 228.128.426.9-1.6-5.5
      
Total crops, fruit and horticulture365.6357.0356.7-0.3-0.1
      
Silage1,088.9 31,064.51,088.724.22.3
Hay192.1 3191.9180.8-11.2-5.8
Pasture2,322.7 32,378.72,376.7-2.0-0.1
      
Crops and Pasture3,969.3 33,992.24,002.810.70.3
      
Rough grazing in use520.2 3524.1521.5-2.6-0.5
      
Area farmed4,489.54,516.34,524.48.10.2
1 Includes sugar beet and fodder beet.
2 Includes other crops not specified elsewhere in the table, miscanthus, fallow land & wild bird cover account for over 80% of this area. See Background Notes.
3 Revised. Pasture & Rough grazing values revised due to consistency checks with DAFM's Basic Payment Scheme.
Table 2 Number of Livestock
DescriptionJune 2017June 2018June 2019   Change 2018 - 2019
' 000 ' 000 %
Total cattle7363.57348.57208.6-139.9-1.9
    Dairy cows 11432.71480.91504.823.91.6
    Other cows1081.01047.9999.7-48.2-4.6
    Bulls 216.910.97.6-3.3-30.7
    Cattle male: 2 years and over431.7442.5437.2-5.3-1.2
    Cattle female: 2 years and over356.4369.3390.721.45.8
    Cattle male: 1-2 years902.3895.0850.2-44.8-5.0
    Cattle female: 1-2 years1011.61023.71010.5-13.2-1.3
    Cattle male: under 1 year1033.5998.1939.5-58.5-5.9
    Cattle female: under 1 year1097.41080.31068.4-11.8-1.1
      
   Total cattle male2384.52346.52234.5-112.0-4.8
   Total cattle female 4979.05002.04974.1-27.9-0.6
      
Total sheep5197.15109.35145.836.50.7
  Breeding sheep2593.52565.52496.5-69.0-2.7
    Ewes: 2 years and over2033.02021.71981.8-39.9-2.0
    Ewes: under 2 years482.2467.8440.5-27.2-5.8
    Rams78.476.074.2-1.8-2.4
  Other sheep2603.62543.92649.3105.44.1
      
Total pigs1556.91621.91616.0-6.0-0.4
  Breeding pigs144.7148.7143.3-5.3-3.6
    Female breeding pigs143.4147.4142.3-5.2-3.5
    Boars1.31.31.1-0.2-14.8
  Other pigs1412.21473.31472.7-0.60.0
    20kg and over1002.11021.41020.7-0.8-0.1
    Less than 20kg410.1451.9452.00.10.0
      
Horses and ponies 384.984.382.0-2.3-2.8
      
Mules, jennets and asses10.89.29.80.55.7
      
Goats 48.39.38.7-0.7-7.4
1 Dairy cows are those kept principally to produce milk for human consumption.
2 Bulls used for breeding purposes only.
3 Horses and Ponies are those kept on agricultural holdings only.
4 Source DAFM. See Background Notes.
Table 3 Area under Crops and Pasture in each Region, June 2019' 000 ha
RegionNorthern and Western Southern Eastern and MidlandState
Border West Total Mid-WestSouth-EastSouth-WestTotal Mid-East & DublinMidlandTotal
Wheat - total0.70.31.0 3.910.85.219.9 38.14.542.663.5
  Winter wheat0.60.20.8 3.79.94.518.1 36.64.240.859.7
  Spring wheat0.10.10.2 0.20.90.71.8 1.50.31.83.8
              
Oats - total0.50.71.3 2.27.92.812.9 7.72.09.723.8
  Winter oats0.20.20.4 1.65.61.48.6 6.31.37.616.6
  Spring oats0.30.60.9 0.62.31.44.3 1.30.72.07.2
              
Barley - total3.52.86.4 14.958.228.7101.7 49.122.271.3179.4
  Winter barley1.61.02.6 8.618.812.740.1 31.19.040.182.8
  Spring barley2.01.83.7 6.239.316.061.6 18.013.231.296.5
              
Other cereals0.00.00.1 0.10.30.00.4 0.40.20.61.0
              
Total cereals4.93.88.7 21.177.236.7134.9 95.228.9124.1267.7
              
Beans and peas0.00.00.1 0.32.80.83.8 3.50.74.38.1
Oilseed rape0.00.00.1 0.92.20.33.5 4.90.85.79.2
Arable silage0.40.20.6 0.20.60.61.4 0.30.40.72.7
Maize silage0.20.10.2 1.25.14.510.7 4.61.15.716.6
Fodder rape and kale0.00.20.2 0.10.20.10.4 0.20.30.51.2
Potatoes0.80.10.8 0.31.80.82.9 4.80.24.98.7
Turnips0.00.10.1 0.00.20.10.3 0.40.00.40.8
Beet 10.00.20.3 0.63.52.66.7 1.41.52.99.9
Vegetables for sale0.00.10.1 0.10.70.31.1 2.10.32.43.6
Fruit0.00.00.0 0.10.30.00.4 0.30.00.40.8
Nurseries, horticulture etc.0.00.00.0 0.00.20.10.3 0.10.00.10.5
Other crops 23.05.18.1 2.45.02.710.2 4.73.98.626.9
              
Crops, fruit and horticulture9.49.919.3 27.199.849.7176.6 122.638.1160.7356.7
              
Silage142.1177.9320.0 209.3123.4227.1559.8 84.3124.6209.01,088.7
Hay 21.928.750.6 48.817.016.882.6 24.523.147.6180.8
Pasture371.1511.6882.7 410.2227.0373.21,010.5 243.5240.1483.52,376.7
              
Crops and pasture544.5728.11,272.6 695.5467.1666.81,829.4 474.9425.9900.84,002.8
              
Rough grazing in use125.3119.1244.3 44.520.7131.0196.3 48.632.380.9521.5
              
Area farmed669.7847.21,516.9 740.0487.9797.82,025.7 523.5458.3981.84,524.4
1 Includes sugar beet and fodder beet.
2 Includes other crops not specified elsewhere in the table, miscanthus, fallow land & wild bird cover account for over 80% of this area. See Background Notes.
Table 4 Number of Cattle in each Region and County, June 2019' 000
Region and CountyTotal   DairyOther Bulls 2CattleCattleCattleCattleCattleCattle Total CattleTotal Cattle
Cattle Cows 1Cows Male 2+Female 2+Male 1-2Female 1-2Male <1Female < 1MaleFemale
State7208.61504.8999.77.6437.2390.7850.21010.5939.51068.42234.54974.1
             
Northern and Western1735.7172.2397.82.596.2116.0202.2243.2246.7258.8547.71188.0
   Border799.5107.5168.21.134.448.592.8111.5114.1121.3242.4557.1
     Cavan228.738.743.30.39.813.223.733.430.735.664.5164.3
     Donegal185.322.139.40.26.99.526.724.129.327.063.0122.3
     Leitrim62.11.923.50.11.64.03.67.59.410.414.847.3
     Monaghan 212.036.631.50.211.213.927.831.528.530.767.8144.2
     Sligo 111.48.130.50.25.07.911.115.016.217.532.479.0
             
   West936.264.7229.61.561.867.4109.4131.7132.6137.5305.3630.9
     Galway 445.438.0100.80.731.630.852.462.562.965.7147.6297.8
     Mayo278.618.474.90.415.519.330.237.840.242.086.2192.4
     Roscommon212.28.254.00.414.717.426.831.429.629.771.5140.7
             
Southern3899.31085.2381.63.4220.7161.9436.0528.0493.3589.31153.42745.9
   Mid-West1425.6327.7162.51.499.766.9173.6189.0196.2208.6470.9954.7
    Clare287.833.770.50.518.414.931.232.942.443.292.5195.2
    Limerick437.8118.836.20.430.221.249.958.957.864.2138.3299.5
    Tipperary700.0175.155.80.551.030.892.497.296.0101.1240.0460.0
             
   South-East1034.9276.698.30.956.042.2129.8146.6129.6155.0316.3718.6
    Carlow104.916.715.40.16.26.214.815.714.415.435.569.4
    Kilkenny364.793.531.90.322.212.850.550.449.353.8122.2242.5
    Waterford266.786.419.60.214.89.928.137.029.840.872.9193.8
    Wexford298.680.031.40.312.813.236.543.436.145.085.7212.9
             
   South-West1438.9480.9120.81.065.152.8132.6192.5167.5225.7366.31072.6
    Cork1093.3379.374.20.750.738.0107.9147.0125.8169.7285.1808.2
    Kerry345.6101.646.50.314.414.824.745.541.756.081.2264.4
             
Eastern and Midland1573.6247.4220.41.7120.3112.8212.0239.3199.5220.3533.41040.2
   Mid-East and Dublin713.1128.592.40.756.555.091.9107.982.797.5231.9481.2
    Dublin23.52.93.90.01.63.42.24.02.72.96.617.0
    Kildare144.918.918.90.116.010.723.322.017.018.156.488.6
    Louth92.617.811.70.17.08.411.213.99.712.828.064.6
    Meath323.864.036.90.326.225.541.949.336.343.3104.8219.1
    Wicklow128.224.921.00.25.77.013.218.717.020.436.192.0
             
   Midland860.5118.9128.01.063.757.8120.1131.4116.8122.8301.5558.9
     Laois259.246.031.80.218.913.040.136.536.136.795.3163.9
     Longford114.410.225.30.28.38.114.616.515.215.938.376.1
     Offaly255.733.231.20.219.218.138.542.136.236.994.2161.5
     Westmeath231.229.639.60.317.318.626.836.429.333.273.7157.5
1 Dairy cows are those kept principally to produce milk for human consumption.
2 Bulls used for breeding purposes only.
Table 5 Number of Sheep, Pigs and Other Livestock in each Region, June 2019' 000
RegionNorthern and Western Southern Eastern and MidlandState
Border West Total Mid-WestSouth-EastSouth-WestTotal Mid-East & DublinMidlandTotal
Total sheep1,039.31,428.62,467.9 226.7549.4700.01,476.1 905.4296.31,201.85,145.8
  Breeding sheep523.7683.11,206.8 113.2262.7353.5729.4 416.5143.8560.32,496.5
    Ewes: 2 years and over405.8535.7941.5 95.1212.2285.5592.8 327.8119.6447.51,981.8
    Ewes: under 2 years102.4125.7228.1 14.143.757.9115.7 77.219.696.8440.5
    Rams15.521.737.2 4.16.810.020.9 11.54.516.174.2
  Other sheep515.7745.51,261.1 113.5286.7346.6746.7 488.9152.6641.52,649.3
              
Total pigs434.740.3474.9 200.4239.5291.3731.3 116.5293.3409.81,616.0
  Breeding pigs39.33.142.4 17.520.725.663.8 12.324.837.1143.3
    Female breeding pigs39.23.142.3 17.420.125.563.0 12.224.837.0142.3
    Boars0.10.00.1 0.10.60.10.8 0.00.10.11.1
  Other pigs395.437.2432.5 183.0218.8265.7667.5 104.2268.5372.71,472.7
    20kg and over284.727.5312.2 129.0144.0170.4443.4 72.5192.5265.01,020.7
    Less than 20kg110.79.7120.4 54.074.895.3224.0 31.676.0107.6452.0
              
Horses and ponies 15.718.524.2 11.112.810.133.9 16.87.023.982.0
              
Mules, jennets and asses2.23.25.3 1.90.41.13.5 0.40.61.09.8
              
Goats 21.51.53.0 1.80.71.13.6 1.20.92.08.7
1 Horses and Ponies are those kept on agricultural holdings only.
2 Source DAFM. See Background notes.

Background Notes

Introduction 

This release presents final estimates of land utilisation and livestock numbers in June 2019 at State and regional level. The estimates for sheep and pigs are based on returns from the 2019 June sample survey of agricultural holdings and the June 2019 Pig Survey conducted by the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The estimates for cattle and for crops are obtained from administrative data from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).

Coverage  Farms where the agricultural area used was at least one hectare (2.47 acres) are included in the June Agricultural Sample Survey. Farms with less than one hectare may also be included if they were engaged in intensive production. 

Results        

Crops  The results for crops are based on data obtained from the DAFM Basic Payment Scheme. Please note that wild bird cover is included under the Other crops category for the first time in the 2018 release. Other crops has been revised for 2017 to show comparable figures. The inclusion of this crop in 2017 has an  impact on the following estimates for both of these years - Crops, fruit and horticulture, Crops and Pasture and Area Farmed.

Cattle  The results for cattle are obtained from DAFM’s Animal Identification and Movement (AIM) system, formerly known as the Cattle Movement Monitoring System (CMMS). This system was introduced at the beginning of 2000 and involves electronically recording data on animal movements.

Goats  The 2019 goat results are obtained from DAFM’s 2018 December Sheep and Goat Census. 

Sheep  The June 2019 results for sheep are based on the trends obtained by comparing the returns from the 2019 sample with the 2018 returns for the same 7,400 farms and applying these trends to the June 2018 figures.

Pigs  A specialist pig survey was conducted by the CSO due to the intensive nature of this activity.

As the figures in the text and tables have been rounded to the nearest 100 units, there may be slight discrepancies between the sum (or difference) of the constituent items and the total shown. Percentage changes have been calculated on actual figures.

Composition of Regions

From the 1st January 2018 an Amendment of the EU NUTS legislation came into effect. This reflects the new regional assembly structure and the other changes under the 2014 Local Government Act. These changes included:

  • The amalgamation of the local authorities of Tipperary North and South, Limerick City and County Councils, Waterford City and County Councils.
  • The establishment of three Regional Assemblies (Northern & Western, Southern, Eastern & Midland).
  • At NUTS 3 level, South Tipperary was transferred from the South-East into the Mid-West NUTS 3 Region and County Louth was moved from the Border to the Mid-East NUTS 3 region.
  • The establishment of the three NUTS 2 Regions which correspond to the three Regional Assemblies and are groupings of the new NUTS 3 Regions.

The composition of the new Regions breakdown is outlined below.  

Northern & Western NUTS2 Region Southern NUTS2 Region Eastern & Midland NUTS2 Region
Border Cavan Mid-West Clare Dublin Dublin City
  Donegal   Limerick City & County   Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
  Leitrim   Tipperary   Fingal
  Monaghan       South Dublin
  Sligo        
           
West Galway City South-East Carlow Mid-East Kildare
  Galway County   Kilkenny   Meath
  Mayo   Waterford City & County   Wicklow
  Roscommon   Wexford   Louth
           
    South-West Cork City Midland Laois
      Cork County   Longford
      Kerry   Offaly
          Westmeath

Results for June Crops and Livestock by region can be found on the CSO Statbank. The figures for 2016 to 2018 are available for the new NUTS regions structure. Data prior to 2016 are available using the older NUTS regions shown below.

Border, Midland and Western NUTS 2 Region   

Southern and Eastern NUTS 2 Region

Border Cavan Dublin Dublin City
  Donegal   Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown       
  Leitrim   Fingal
  Louth   South Dublin
  Monaghan    
  Sligo Mid-East Kildare
      Meath
Midland         Laois   Wicklow
  Longford    
  Offaly Mid-West Clare
  Westmeath   Limerick City
      Limerick
West Galway City   North Tipperary
  Galway    
  Mayo South-East          Carlow
  Roscommon                 Kilkenny
      South Tipperary
      Waterford City
      Waterford
      Wexford
       
    South-West Cork City
      Cork
      Kerry

 

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