The latest figures from the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) show that 288,502 calf births were registered in the first half of 2025, up marginally on the 286,037 on the first half of 2024.
However, a greater proportion of these calves are beef rather than dairy-sired, as dairy farmers continue to utilise sexed semen to breed replacements. Dairy-sired calf registrations fell by 6.5% to 58,960 and when compared to the same period in 2020, are down 23%. Since then, dairy bull calves have dropped 52% to 14,839 head, while dairy heifers have remained fairly static around the 44,000 mark.
Across both dairy and suckler herds to June, 229,542 calf births are of a beef sire, an increase of more than 6,500 head from the 2024 figure of 222,958.
The number of calves registered to suckler cows stood at 130,704, which is 1% lower than in 2024, but 16% behind the same period in 2023 when 156,082 beef calves were registered.
By contrast, there has been a 20% increase in beef sired calves out of dairy dams over the last two years. In the first half of 2025, a total of 98,870 beef x dairy calves were registered by NI farmers.
Sire
In terms of sire choice, Limousin and Charolais continue to dominate in the suckler sector, each accounting for 35% of total calf births in the first half of this year.
In the dairy sector, Aberdeen Angus is the leading sire, with over 50% of dairy beef registrations to date.
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