The Irish cattle kill was down 10.8% in the first six months of 2026 compared with 2025, according to the Central Statistics office (CSO).
Between January and June 2026, cattle slaughterings stood at approximately 809,000, a decrease of 98,000 when compared with the same period in 2025.
In June 2026, cattle slaughterings were down by 3.8% to 124,000 head, compared with June 2025.
The beef trade remained relatively unchanged last week, with quotes similar to the previous week.
It was the first week in a number of weeks which had not seen another lift, indicating a stabilising of the trade.
Sheep and pig kill
The number of sheep slaughtered in the first half of 2026 fell by 2.6% compared with the same period in 2025.
This represents a drop of 30,000 to 1.1m head.
The sheep kill decreased by 12.6% in June 2026 when compared with June 2025.
The number of pigs slaughtered in the first six months of 2026 was up 4% or 67,000 head on the same six-month period in 2025 to a total of 1.7m head.
Pig slaughterings in June 2026 increased by 5.8% compared with June 2025.
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