The number of dairy cows in the European Union declined again last year. The herd has been shrinking continuously for six years. According to the European Union's statistical office (Eurostat), 16.04 million dairy cows were kept last year in the eleven surveyed EU countries.
There were approximately 105 thousand fewer dairy cows last year, a decrease of 0.7 percent compared to the previous year. Most dairy cows are still found in Germany (3.8 million), but that is 1.9% less. France, another major dairy producer, also significantly reduced its herd, which fell by 65 thousand, or 1.9%, to 3.27 million over the course of the year.
In the Netherlands, according to Eurostat, 1.57 million cows were milked in May 2022, the same amount as a year earlier.
The largest decrease, almost 2 percent, was recorded in Belgium with a 2.3 percent drop to 526 thousand animals. Additionally, cow numbers declined in Romania, Denmark, Italy, and Sweden between 1.3% and 1.8%.
Ireland has seen an increase in its cow herd for several years now, continuing up to 1.63 million head. The dairy herd in Austria grew proportionally even more, by 3.4%, and in Spain by as much as 7.7%.
According to Eurostat, the total herd in the eleven surveyed EU countries declined by nearly 1 million head, or 1.6%, to 61.25 million animals compared to the previous year. France was the main contributor to this decline, with 447,000 fewer animals, or 2.5%, down to 17.42 million head. Belgian producers reduced their herd by 5.0% to 2.24 million animals.
In Germany, the herd decreased by 193 thousand, or 1.7%.
Only farmers in Ireland and the Netherlands slightly increased their herds compared to the previous year, by 0.5% and 1.0% respectively.