Suckler Cow Numbers Fall by Over 140,000 Head in Five Years
As of February 1, this year, there were 142,000 less suckler cows in Ireland than on the same date five years ago, according to data from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Department figures show that a total of 863,882 beef-sired (suckler) cows were in the country on Febuary 1, this year.
Whereas five years ago, on February 1, 2017, the number of beef-sired cows in the country stood at 1,006,179 – representing a fall of 142,297 suckler cows in five years.
While the number of cows can vary significantly on a monthly basis over the course of any given year, the comparison reflects the current declining trend in the Irish suckler herd.
Meanwhile, the number of dairy cows in Ireland has increased by over 224,000 head in the same time period.
Looking at the overall cattle population, department figures show there were a total of 6.66 million cattle in Ireland on February 1, this year. This figure is up marginally from the 6.53 million cattle in the country on the same date five years ago.
Mart throughput up
The number of cattle traded at Irish marts in the first two months of this year has also increased by 15,000, from 65,000 cattle sold at Irish marts in January 2020 to over 80,000 sold in January 2021.
February also witnessed an increase in numbers of cattle sold at marts, with almost 131,500 cattle sold at marts in February this year. This figure is up by over 23,000 cattle on the same month last year.
Munster-based marts sold the largest number of cattle in the first two months this year followed by Leinster, Connacht and then Ulster.
