AQW 51370/22-27
Mr John Blair
Alliance Party
South Antrim
Tabled Date: 09/09/2026
Answered On Date: 24/09/2026
Priority Written: No
Question:
To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs to detail the number of animals slaughtered for agri-food production, in each of the last five years, broken down by category of animal.
Answer:
The Department maintains information collated annually and published on the departmental website. The requested information for animal slaughter is set out below in tables for pigs (Table 1), poultry (Table 2), sheep (Table 3) and cattle (Table 4), with the reference provided to the relevant internet link. Table 1. Number of pigs slaughtered 2021-2025, no sub-category applicable. Reference: https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications/slaughtering-pigs-2003/ Year | Total Pigs | 2021 | 1,938,355 | 2022 | 1,944,983 | 2023 | 1,840,806 | 2024 | 1,907,993 | 2025 | 1,960,218 |
Table 2. Number of poultry slaughtered 2021-2025, by category. Year | Broilers | Turkeys | Ducks & Geese | Spent Layers & Breeders | Total Poultry | 2021 | 134,556,019 | 18,163 | 0 | 1,070 | 134,575,252 | 2022 | 124,743,439 | 69,302 | 0 | 320 | 124,813,061 | 2023 | 140,269,396 | 93,207 | 1,063 | 415 | 140,364,081 | 2024 | 140,481,306 | 73,826 | 2,374 | 50 | 140,557,556 | 2025 | 123,020,889 | 75,833 | 1,362 | 0 | 123,098,084 |
Table 3. Number of sheep slaughtered 2021-2025, by category. Reference: https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications/cattle-and-sheep-slaughterings-2001/ Year | Young Sheep & Lambs | Mature Ewes & Rams | Total Sheep | 2021 | 428,641 | 30,862 | 459,503 | 2022 | 448,166 | 28,168 | 476,334 | 2023 | 476,091 | 26,714 | 502,805 | 2024 | 431,461 | 25,425 | 456,886 | 2025 | 376,234 | 28,344 | 404,578 |
Table 4. Number of cattle slaughtered 2021-2025, by category. Reference: https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/publications/cattle-and-sheep-slaughterings-2001/ Year | Steers | Heifers | Young Bulls | Cows | Bulls | Calves < 12 mths | Total Cattle | 2021 | 176,198 | 134,896 | 36,408 | 104,694 | 5,489 | 5,931 | 463,616 | 2022 | 183,523 | 147,542 | 42,420 | 118,872 | 6,534 | 7,004 | 505,895 | 2023 | 170,179 | 144,063 | 41,141 | 116,103 | 6,534 | 5,699 | 483,719 | 2024 | 183,535 | 165,229 | 42,536 | 120,514 | 7,133 | 5,842 | 524,789 | 2025 | 166,181 | 155,505 | 44,893 | 111,659 | 6,583 | 5,499 | 490,320 |
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