Livestock Numbers | |||
Cattle | Pigs | Sheep | |
'000 | |||
2019 | 6,559.7 | 1,613.3 | 3,809.4 |
2020 | 6,529.4 | 1,678.6 | 3,862.5 |
% change | -0.5 | 4.0 | 1.4 |
The results of the December 2020 Livestock Survey show that pig numbers increased by 4.0% to 1,678,600. Breeding pigs increased by 2.0% and non-breeding pigs increased by 4.3%. See Table 2.
The provisional estimate for the total number of sheep was 3,862,500, an increase of 53,100 (+1.4%) on December 2019. The number of breeding sheep increased by 58,100 (+2.2%) and other sheep decreased by 5,000 (-0.4%). See Table 3.
The total number of cattle decreased by 30,200 (-0.5%) to 6,529,400. The number of dairy cows increased by 30,300 (+2.1%) while other cows decreased by 34,200 (-3.6%). The total number of cattle under 1 increased by 94,200 (+4.8%) while cattle 2 years and over (excluding cows and bulls) decreased by 85,900 (-19.9%). See Table 1.