To the end of August 2024, NI feed mills had delivered 5.5% more animal feed to farmers than in the same period in 2023.

According to data published by DAERA, 1.844m tonnes of cattle, pig, poultry and sheep feed was delivered between January and August 2024, compared to 1.747m tonnes in 2023.

The biggest percentage increase was seen in pig feed, which was up 10% to nearly 166,000t.

However, around half of all feed is for cattle and of this, around two-thirds goes to the dairy sector.

Total cattle feed deliveries in 2024 were up 6.4% to stand at 958,200t at the end of August 2024. After cattle, the poultry sector is the next biggest user of feed, with 616,600t going out onto NI farms in the first eight months of the year, an increase of 3.2%.

That leaves the sheep sector a distant fourth, with 50,700t delivered by the end of August 2024, an increase of under 1% when compared to equivalent period in 2023.