EU livestock output set to decline in 2026 - report
Cattle, sheep, goats fall as pig production rises
20 March 2026
1 minute read
By: It is forecast that the European Union's production of most types of livestock will decline in 2026, according to a recent market report from Eurostat.
In the second half (semester) of 2026, the gross indigenous production (GIP) of bovine animals in the EU is forecast to fall to 11.4 million head. This would be 0.5 million head less than the same period in 2025, equivalent to a decline of 4.2%.
Both goat production and sheep production are forecast to decline particularly sharply: down 17.1% (to 1.9 million head) and 17.8% (to 12.2 million head) respectively between the second semesters of 2025 and 2026.
By contrast, forecasts for pig production suggest an increase to 61.2 million head in the last quarter of 2026 compared with the same quarter of 2025, equivalent to an increase of 3.2%.
France, the EU’s largest producer of bovine meat in the EU, is projected to account for 23.1% of the EU’s total production in the second semester of 2026. It is forecast that bovine animal production in France will decline only slightly (-0.4%) to 2.63 million head between the second semesters of 2025 and 2026.
Among other key producer countries, there is also forecast to be a relatively small decline in Germany (-0.6% to 1.7 million head) but a far sharper rate of decline in Ireland (-5.2% to 0.9 million head). Spain is the only key producer expected to increase bovine meat production (+2.7% to 1.1 million head).
It is forecast that Spain will produce 15.8 million pigs in the fourth quarter of 2026, accounting for 25.7% of the EU total. This would represent a 12.0% jump in production compared with the fourth quarter of 2025. There are also expected to be increases in other key EU producer-countries: these include Germany (+3.8% to 9.5 million pigs), Denmark (+3.1% to 8.0 million) and France (+2.3% to 5.6 million).
Spain will remain the EU’s leading sheep producer in 2026, though output is forecast to slump 40.4% to 2.3 million head in the second half of 2026.
Greece is the EU’s leading producer of goatmeat. It is forecast that its production of goats will decline by 2.6% to 0.8 million goats.
