Average CFU herd finishing over 1,000 cattle/year
Latest figures from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) show that a total of 458,500 factory cattle were sourced from Controlled Finishing Unit (CFU) herds in 2024.
As of December 2024, there were 455 herds that had CFU or 'feedlot' status in Ireland indicating that the average number of cattle finished from these CFU herds last year was 1,007 head of cattle.
As of November 2022, there were 374 CFUs in Ireland and by December 2024, this figure had increased by 81 head to 455 herds with CFU status.
The table below details the number of cattle slaughtered at EU-approved plants originating from CFU herds by month from 2019-2024:
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2023 | 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 28,000 | 25,000 | 25,500 | 28,500 | 37,000 | 37,000 | 40,000 |
| February | 26,000 | 27,000 | 25,500 | 35,000 | 35,500 | 35,500 | 39,000 |
| March | 27,000 | 27,000 | 28,500 | 36,000 | 36,500 | 36,500 | 36,000 |
| April | 29,000 | 20,000 | 28,000 | 35,500 | 31,500 | 31,500 | 36,500 |
| May | 31,000 | 22,500 | 28,500 | 40,000 | 37,500 | 37,500 | 39,000 |
| June | 25,500 | 26,500 | 32,000 | 35,500 | 36,500 | 36,500 | 36,500 |
| July | 26,000 | 26,500 | 30,500 | 34,000 | 32,500 | 32,500 | 36,500 |
| August | 20,000 | 21,000 | 25,500 | 32,000 | 28,500 | 28,500 | 30,500 |
| September | 13,000 | 22,000 | 25,500 | 32,000 | 27,500 | 27,500 | 35,500 |
| October | 21,500 | 24,000 | 27,000 | 30,500 | 32,500 | 32,500 | 41,500 |
| November | 20,000 | 27,500 | 31,500 | 41,000 | 43,000 | 43,000 | 44,500 |
| December | 21,500 | 30,000 | 33,000 | 36,500 | 37,000 | 37,000 | 43,000 |
| Total | 288,500 | 299,000 | 341,000 | 416,500 | 415,500 | 415,500 | 458,500 |
More specialist beef finishing farms in Ireland are opting to switch their herds to CFU status and there are several reasons for this but bovine tuberculosis (TB) precautions are one of the main reasons.
As part of Ireland’s Bovine TB Eradication Programme, if a beef finishing herd meets the necessary criteria, it is allowed to avail of a special status – known as a CFU.
A CFU herd is a specialised finisher of beef that does not deliberately engage in the active breeding of animals.
It is a non-breeding herd which disposes of all cattle on the holding direct for slaughter, and poses a minimal risk of infecting cattle on adjacent holdings.
To be considered eligible for CFU status, the holding must fulfill at least one of the following three criteria:
- The cattle are permanently housed (never on pasture) or;
- There are no contiguous holdings with cattle or;
- The boundaries are walled, double-fenced or equivalent, so as to prevent any direct contact with cattle on contiguous holdings;
- When a herd meets the criteria to be regarded as a CFU under the Bovine TB Eradication Programme, the herd is restricted under the TB regulations and a special official supervisory and testing protocol is established;
- Such herds are not exempt from testing, reactor removal or disinfection requirements. Restricted CFU herds (feedlots) are TB tested at least once a year.
According to DAFM, the CFU status arrangement "allows the delivery of an effective level of disease risk management while controlling the risk of further disease spread in compliance with animal health legislation, and enabling business continuity in this particular type of enterprise through the inward movement of cattle".
Cattle from CFU herds (feedlots) restricted under the TB Eradication Programme are only permitted to move to an EU-approved slaughter plant and may not be exported.
