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Since new trading arrangements came into effect on 1 January 2021 by way of the NI Protocol, there has been no cattle moved from Britain for direct slaughter in NI.
That compares to the situation in 2020, when 1,879 cattle from Britain were slaughtered in NI abattoirs, and the 4,362 from 2019.
Most of that trade was understood to be cull cows.
However, despite the new impediments to trade, 2,188 store and breeding cattle from Britain still ended up on NI farms in 2021, although that is significantly down on the 3,882 from 2020.
The number of breeding and store cattle moving to farms in Britain stood at 4,279 in 2021
In terms of cattle moving in the opposite direction, 643 went from NI to Britain for direct slaughter in 2021, up from 220 in 2020.
The number of breeding and store cattle moving to farms in Britain stood at 4,279 in 2021, which is significantly more than the 2,987 from the previous year.
Sheep
It is a similar story in the sheep sector, with new trading arrangements for imports into NI putting an end to the movement of sheep from Britain for direct slaughter in 2021.
However, numbers involved have been traditionally low. In 2020, a total of 804 sheep from Britain ended up at abattoirs in NI.
The NI Protocol has also had a negative impact on numbers of breeding and store sheep coming from Britain to farms in NI.
A total of 32,157 sheep, understood to be mostly cull ewes, were sent from NI for direct slaughter in Britain during 2021
In 2020, a total of 9,915 sheep were taken across. In 2021, this figure fell to 1,575.
However, there is significant trade in the opposite direction, which has gained some momentum during 2021.
A total of 32,157 sheep, understood to be mostly cull ewes, were sent from NI for direct slaughter in Britain during 2021.
That is nearly treble the 12,119 from the previous year.
The number of sheep going from NI to farms in Britain stood at 50,636 in 2021, which is only down slightly on the 51,206 from 2020.
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