The milking herd in Britain fell to 1.6m head in January 2026, a figure that the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) has said is the lowest number recorded in a decade.

Numbers are down 1.3% on January 2025 levels. The dairy herd overall in Britain stood at 2.47m head, with numbers down 1.6% year-on-year. The decrease in numbers was seen across all categories of animals, except for four-to-six-year-old cows.

AHDB analysis of the figures shows that there was a 30,000head drop in cows aged between two and four years and there was a 20,000head drop in female stock under two years of age.

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“The four to six years category continued to increase, logging an additional 15,000 head, easing some of the decline,” AHDB said.

Youngstock boom

“This growth has mainly come from the calves born in the youngstock boom of 2021 now progressing through the milking herd.

“Cows aged six to eight years saw a small decline of 1,000 head year-on-year but those over eight years saw a decline of 5,000 head,” it said.

The average age of a cow in Britain’s milking herd now stands at 4.53 years, slightly older than last year’s figures, AHDB added.

Milk supply

Despite the drop in cow numbers, British milk deliveries are hitting record highs.

“Higher yields per cow have been the major driver of the increasing output,” according to AHDB.

“Farmers are making use of better genetics improving the herd efficiency and focusing on younger cows.

“Higher cull cow prices are an incentive for farmers to move on older cows in the herd, which could reduce numbers further going forward as low milk price pressures hit,” it added.