Beef cattle numbers increased in 2021 while the number of sheep dipped slightly, Stats NZ said today.
Provisional figures from the 2021 agricultural production survey show beef cattle numbers have increased to 4 million at June 2021, a 4 percent (142,000) increase from the previous year.
"The total number of beef cattle was at a historical low in 2016, however it's been increasing and is now up by 492,000, or 14 percent, since that time," agricultural production statistics manager Ana Krpo said. Good beef prices throughout this period contributed to this increase.
| At June | Total beef cattle |
| 2002 | 4491000 |
| 2003 | 4627000 |
| 2004 | 4447000 |
| 2005 | 4424000 |
| 2006 | 4439000 |
| 2007 | 4394000 |
| 2008 | 4137000 |
| 2009 | 4101000 |
| 2010 | 3949000 |
| 2011 | 3846000 |
| 2012 | 3734000 |
| 2013 | 3699000 |
| 2014 | 3670000 |
| 2015 | 3547000 |
| 2016 | 3533000 |
| 2017 | 3616000 |
| 2018 | 3721000 |
| 2019 | 3890000 |
| 2020 | 3883000 |
| 2021 | 4025000 |
The number of sheep nationally has been steady compared with the previous year, at 26 million. The lambing rate was also consistent with the previous year.
There was a slight increase in the number of dairy cattle, to 6.3 million in June 2021, an increase of 1 percent from the previous year. The number of dairy cows in milk or calf in 2021 remained relatively unchanged at 4.8 million.
The total value of dairy exports in 2021 was $15.7 billion. China remains the main export destination, accounting for just over 40 percent of total dairy exports with a value of $6.5 billion.
There was little change in the area harvested of wheat and barley. During the year ending June 2021 there were 45,000 hectares of wheat harvested and 44,000 hectares of barley.
