Total calf registrations for 2022 have now surpassed 2.3 million, according to the latest data from the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF).
This figure is very closely aligned to 2021 when 2,318,011 calves had been registered; in 2022 the figure stands at 2,319,613 head, meaning at present there is a 1,602 head difference between the two years.
When 2021 is compared to 2020, for the same period, there is 46,690 head difference to be seen.
Calf registrations
Taking a closer look at the total calf registration figures over the last number of years we can see that since 2017, there has been a slight increase in the number of births.
103,384 extra calves have been born in 2022 so far, compared to the same period in 2017.
Total calf registrations, year to date:
- 2022 – 2,319,613;
- 2021 – 2,318,011;
- 2020 – 2,272,923;
- 2019 – 2,218,575;
- 2018 – 2,214,562;
- 2017 – 2,216,229.
Looking at the latest update of the ICBF data, we see that a total of 10,741 calves were born in the last seven days, down from 14,369 for the same period in 2021.
A total of 6,321 dairy calves were born in the most recent weekly dataset, down from 7,740 for the same period in 2021.
The decrease in births continues with beef or suckler births, with 2,209 fewer calves born compared to the same period in 2021.
Dairy calves
Focusing on dairy births we can see that over 1.5 million dairy calves have been born on Irish farms so far this year.
Since 2017, the number of calves born to dairy dams has been steadily increasing – with 203,991 extra calves in 2022 so far compared to the same period in 2017.
Total dairy calf registrations year to date:
- 2022 – 1,550,190;
- 2021 – 1,521,406;
- 2020 – 1,466,611;
- 2019 – 1,412,064;
- 2018 – 1,386,052;
- 2017 – 1,346,199.
Suckler calves
Regarding beef or suckler births, there has been 769,423 calves registered so far in 2022.
Unlike dairy, the beef figures are seeing a year-on-year decrease in the number of calves registered.
There is a 100,607 head difference between the figures for 2017 and 2022 for the year so far.
By the end of the year, it is likely that this gap may be even larger.
Total suckler calf registrations year to date:
- 2022 – 769,423;
- 2021 – 794,398;
- 2020 – 806,262;
- 2019 – 806,511;
- 2018 – 828,510;
- 2017 – 870,030.
To breakdown some of the figures even more, in 2022 so far, dairy births accounted for 67% of the total births.
In 2017, dairy births accounted for 61% of the total births for the year to date.
If we go back even further to 2014, based on Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, AIM Bovine Statistics Report figures, dairy births accounted for 54% of the total births for the year.
And, going back even further to 2012, suckler births were actually higher than dairy births, with 50.7% of the total births coming from the suckler herd.
The figures highlight a trend which comes as a surprise to few; dairy expansion is leading to the reduction in suckler cow numbers and thus the number of calves born to suckler cows.