The number of cattle in Ireland in June 2024 was 7,183,100 - a fall of 158,300 (-2.2%) when compared with June 2023.

That's according to the Crops and Livestock Survey Final Results June 2024 published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

Female cattle aged two years and over increased by 7%, while female cattle aged one-two years decreased by 2%.

Meanwhile, the number of sheep in June 2024 was 5,175,700 - a fall of 498,700 (-8.8%) when compared with June 2023.

The number of pigs in June 2024 was 1,679,900, up 18,500 (+1.1%) when compared with the previous June. 

The total area under cereals fell by 10,400 ha (-3.8%) to 262,000ha.

Commenting on this latest CSO release, statistician in the CSO Agriculture Division, Stephanie Kelleher said: "The final results for June 2024 show that the total number of sheep in the country fell by 498,700 (-8.8%) to 5,175,700 when compared with June 2023.

The number of other sheep fell by 134,300 (-5.1%) to 2,490,500. 

"The total number of dairy cows fell by 22,700 (-1.4%) while the total number of other cows declined by 46,800 (-5.4%). The total number of cattle aged two years and over rose by 20,700 (+2.6%) in the year since 2023," she added.

According to the CSO, a regional analysis of the livestock numbers shows that the largest number of cattle (1,440,200) were in the mid-west region.

The number of dairy cows fell by 22,700 (-1.4%) while the number of other cows dropped by 46,800 (-5.4%) when compared with June 2023. The number of bulls was higher by 2,600 (+5.6%).

The largest number of sheep (1,438,700) were in the west region and the largest number of pigs (380,200) were in the border region. 

The number of breeding sheep fell by 11.9% while the number of other sheep fell by 5.1%.

The number of breeding pigs increased by 4.9% while the number of other pigs increased by 0.7%.

Regarding the three main cereals, the land areas under winter wheat, winter oats and winter barley decreased by 10,600ha (-20.6%), 2,500ha (-25.4%), and 9,700ha (-18.3%) respectively in June 2024.

The areas under spring wheat, spring oats, and spring barley increased by 2,500ha (+54.9%), 5,100ha (+29.6%) and 4,800ha (+3.6%) compared with June 2023.

The area under crops and pasture rose to 3,951,800ha, an increase of 89,600ha (+2.3%).