Number of cattle in Ireland falls by over 276,000 head
The number of cattle in Ireland as of June 1, 2025, was more than 276,000 head below the same time last year, according to Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) figures.
The 3.8% drop in the national herd is being attributed to a combination of factors including reduced suckler and dairy cow numbers as well as increased live exports.
Calf births have fallen by over 56,000 head to date this year and, as of June 1, there were over 82,000 fewer cows in the country when compared to 12 months previously.
The table below compares the national herd on June 1, 2025 and the same date of 2024:
| June 1, 2024 | June 1, 2025 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beef herd | 4,261,200 | 4,169,155 | -92,045 |
| Dairy herd | 2,929,265 | 2,745,009 | -184,256 |
| Total | 7,190,465 | 6,914,164 | -276,301 |
The number of beef-sired cattle in the country (including cows) fell by over 92,000 head in the past 12 months, with the number of dairy-sired animals falling by over 184,000 head.
The tables below show the national beef herd populations as of June 1 in 2024 and 2025:
All cattle of a beef-breed sire are included in the data above. As can be seen, there are 92,000 fewer beef cattle in the system on June 1 this year compared to June 1 last year.
The tables below show the national dairy herd populations on June 1 in 2024 and 2025:
All cattle of a dairy-breed sire are included in the tables above. The dairy cattle population as of June 1 2025 is 184,256 head below that for June 1, 2024.
The number of calves born in Ireland this year has fallen by over 56,000 head, according to the latest Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) calf registration data.
As of Friday, July 25, a total of 2,011,047 calves were registered in the Republic of Ireland this year. This figure marks a fall of 56,483 calves from the 2,067,530 calves registered in the same time last year.
The number of suckler-bred calves born this year has fallen by almost 24,000 head (23,959) to 571,463 as of Friday, July 25.
The number of calves registered to dairy cows has fallen by 32,524 head to 1,463,584 head in the same time period.
As of July 8, calf exports are up by 25,900 head year-on-year, with 218,267 calves exported to date this year, according to DAFM figures.
The number of suckler and dairy cows in Ireland has also declined in the past year.
From June 2025 to June 2024:
- Suckler cow numbers have fallen by 44,840;
- Dairy cow numbers have fallen by 37,432
- Total cow numbers have fallen by 82,272.
DAFM figures show as of June 1, 2025, there were 765,877 suckler cows and 1,601,800 dairy cows in Ireland.
Meanwhile, on June 1, 2024, there were 810,717 suckler cows and 1,639,232 dairy cows in Ireland.
