Some 683,897 calf births have been registered on Irish beef and dairy farms so far this year, the latest figures from the ICBF show.

When compared to the corresponding period in 2016, it’s a drop of 33,841 head or 4.7%.

The fall in calf registrations may be indicative of decisions taken on farms last spring and it could be down to farmers pushing back calvings to better match grass growth at farm level.

Official figures show that both dairy and beef calf registrations are back on 2016 levels – with registrations down by 18,343 head (3.1%) and 15,498 head (11.6%) respectively.

Source: ICBF

Source: ICBF

However, the fall in beef births may be due to a declining suckler herd, as figures from the CSO show that there were 11,200 fewer suckler cows in Ireland in December 2016 than the same month in 2015.

But, the Irish dairy cow herd actually increased in 2016, with an additional 55,300 cows coming into the system – an increase of 4.5% on December 2015 levels.

Given that a large portion of these cows are going to produce a calf this year, calf births on Irish dairy farms could increase once more in 2017.

Last year, an additional 47,570 calves were registered on Irish farms – with over 63% of these calves being registered as dairy births.

Figures from Teagasc also show that milk production on Irish farms is expected to increase by 6% in 2017. This follows an estimated increase of 5% in 2016.

Calf exports up in 2017

Calf exports appear to be in a positive position as some 5,643 head have been shipped out of Ireland up to the week ending February 18.

This is an increase of just over 1,200 head or 27.9% on the corresponding period in 2016, figures from the Department of Agriculture show.

The majority of these exports have been Holstein Friesian bull calves, which have been shipped to markets such as Spain and the Netherlands.

These markets are the main destinations for Irish calves and official figures show that shipments to Spain and Holland have increased by 44.3% and 80% respectively on 2016 levels.