LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION, 2025

Production in cattle farming

In 2025, as compared to the previous year, the increase of cattle went up by 3.3%, that is, by about 2 700 tonnes. In the same period, the total number of calves brought forth increased by about a thousand head (by 0.9%). The total number of slaughtered cattle, that is, slaughtered head, decreased by 5.7% (around 9 000 head), while the net weight decreased by about 920 tonnes (by 2.2%).

The total production of cows’ milk decreased by 5.0% as compared to the same period of the previous year.

The total import of cattle in 2025 decreased by 9.0% and their total export by 7.4%.

Production in pig farming

In 2025, the increase of pigs in pig farming went down by 10.6%, the number of slaughtered pigs by 16.1% and their net weight by 14.8%. The number of piglets brought forth decreased by about 193 000 head (by 13.1%) in 2025 as compared to the previous year.

As regards foreign trade in 2025, the export of pigs of all categories was lower than in the previous year (by 1.4%), while their total import decreased by 15.5%.

At the same time, the number of losses decreased by 18.4% or around 33 000 head.

Production in sheep farming

The increase of sheep went down by 5.3%, that is, by about 550 tonnes compared to 2024, while the total number of lambs brought forth decreased by about 23 000 head (by 5.7%). The total number of slaughtered sheep increased by about 29 000 head (by 6.2%), that is, by about 375 tonnes of net weight (by 6.5%).

The production of sheep’s milk decreased by 0.4% and the production of wool by 16.6%.

In 2025, as compared to the previous year, the import of sheep decreased by 31.9%, while their export by 78.6%.

Production in goat farming

The increase of goats was 3.6% lower than in the previous year, while the number of kids brought forth decreased by 11.9%. The number of slaughtered goats decreased by 15.0% and their net weight by 15.2%.

The production of goats’ milk decreased by 5.7%.

In 2025, concerning goat farming, the total foreign trade was statistically insignificant.

Production in poultry farming

Concerning the production of poultry in 2025, as compared to 2024, the number of hatched chicks increased by 4.7%, while the increase of poultry went up by 8.8%.

The total number of slaughtered poultry increased by 9.7% (around 5.1 million head) and their net weight by 10.2% (around 9 500 tonnes).

A decrease of 4.3% was recorded in the production of hens’ eggs, while the production of eggs of other poultry increased by 9.3%.

In 2025, as compared to 2024, the total import of poultry decreased by 1.8% and their export by 5.7%.

NOTES ON METHODOLOGY

Sources and methods of data collection

Data on livestock production on agricultural farms are collected through the regular Annual Survey on Crop and Animal Production (PO-71 form)

Data on the number of livestock and poultry as well as on livestock production were collected separately for legal entities and parts thereof and separately for private family farms.

Data for business entities are collected in two ways: through reports that are submitted to the Croatian Bureau of Statistics by postal service and via a web application filled in by reporting units themselves.

Data for private family farms were collected by using the CATI (Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing) method applied to a selected stratified sample. The sample has been selected on the basis of the Statistical Register of Agricultural Holdings and numbers approximately 25 000 units.

These reports provide data on the number and weight of livestock and poultry, balance of cattle, pigs, sheep, goats and poultry, production and balance of eggs, balance of milk on private family farms, milk production (cows’, sheep’s and goats’), wool and eggs.

The expanded data were compared to data from previous years and to available administrative sources. On the basis of all available data, corrections were done when necessary.

Data on import and export of livestock are taken over from the Foreign Trade in Goods Statistics Department.

The methodology for carrying out the livestock survey is based on Regulation (EU) 2022/2379 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 on statistics on agricultural input and output, amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 617/2008 and repealing Regulations (EC) No 1165/2008, (EC) No 543/2009 and (EC) No 1185/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Directive 96/16/EC, as well as on Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2745 of 8 December 2023 laying down rules for the application of Regulation (EU) 2022/2379 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards animal production statistics, and on the Methodological Basis for Gathering Data on Milk and Dairy Products Statistics (NN, No. 42/13).

Coverage and comparability

Reporting units are business entities and parts thereof defined in section A Agriculture, forestry and fishing according to the National Classification of Activities, 2007 version (NN, Nos 58/07 and 72/07) as well as other business entities and parts thereof engaged in the production of livestock but classified elsewhere.

Reporting units are also private family farms engaged in the production of livestock and poultry.

Confidentiality

Aggregate data that enable recognition of individual reporting units (due to their small number, the dominance rule or secondary confidentiality rule), in accordance with the Official Statistics Act (NN, Nos 25/20, 155/23, 124/25 – corr. and 69/26) and the Instruction on the Method of Protection of Confidential Statistical Data in the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, are treated as confidential and are, therefore, not published.

Definitions

Increase of cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and poultry means a gross production of meat in a reference year and is calculated by adding the difference in the weight of export and import to the weight of slaughtered livestock and the difference of the weight of the herd at the end and at the beginning of a reference period.

Newborns. Calved, farrowed, lambed, kidded, hatched. It comprises the total number of obtained live-born offspring of livestock and poultry (calves, piglets, lambs, kids, chicks).

Milk. The production of cows’, sheep’s and goats’ milk in legal entities as well as on private family farms is presented. The total milked quantity in a reference period is presented, irrespective of the way of milking.

Total slaughtering. Covers all livestock and poultry slaughtered on the territory of the Republic of Croatia, irrespective of origin. It represents the sum of livestock and poultry slaughtered in abattoirs and livestock and poultry slaughtered at legal entities (compulsory slaughtering) and on private family farms.

Wool. Quantities of trimmed (clipped) wool from grown up sheep and tags (matted wool and cropped wool) are reported as raw wool.

Eggs production. Data on the total number of laid eggs by all categories of hens and other kinds of poultry (eggs for setting and eggs for human consumption) are reported.

Losses. Data are reported on the number of livestock and poultry (offspring and adult head) that died due to infectious diseases, exhaustion and accidents as well as on the number of head missing or killed, whose meat is not suitable for human consumption because of diseases.

Published by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics, Zagreb, Ilica 3, P. O. B. 80
Phone: (+385 1) 48 06 111
Press corner: press@dzs.hr

Persons responsible:
Edita Omerzo, Director of Spatial Statistics Directorate
Lidija Brković, Director General

Prepared by:
Predrag Cvjetićanin

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