Livestock breeding in Spain.

Reading time : 2 min 50 s

Let's immerse ourselves in the plains of Spain, where life abounds under an endless sky. How do livestock, poultry and fish thrive together, forming a breeding harmony that celebrates their union?

Numbers and diversity of species in Spain:

In Spain, livestock plays a major role in agriculture and the economy. Here is an overview of the diversity of farmed species and their approximate numbers.

Cattle: Spain has around 6 million head of cattle, including breeds such as dairy cattle (like Holstein) and beef cattle (like Charolais and Limousin). Over the past ten years, cattle breeding in Spain has grown by an impressive 24%. In 2022, the country produced 732,000 tonnes of beef, which places it fourth among beef producers within the European Union. In 2020, the Spanish dairy cattle sector represented 4.5% of overall agricultural production, generating revenues of €2,385 million. Within the European Union, Spain occupies the seventh position in terms of cow's milk production.

Sheep: The country is also renowned for its sheep farming, with around 20 million sheep. Local breeds like Merino and Churra are important for wool and meat production.
Pigs: Pig farming is very developed in Spain, with nearly 30 million pigs. The Iberian breed, raised mainly for the production of Iberian ham, a high quality product, is emblematic of the country. The Livestock Institute report shows that Spain is now the main producer of pigs in Europe. In ten years, from 2012 to 2022, it increased its slaughter by 45%, which means that it now produces 5 million tonnes. More than half of this production is exported to other countries.

In 2021, Spain overtook Germany as Europe's largest pig producer, with 58.5 million pigs slaughtered, an increase of 4.2%. Meanwhile, Germany, with a population almost twice as large, recorded 56.2 million animals slaughtered. In addition, around 60% of Spanish pork production is exported, mainly to China with 1.3 million tonnes, and to France with 300,000 tonnes.

Poultry: Poultry, including chickens, turkeys and ducks, are raised in large numbers in Spain, with a total population of around 90 million birds. Thirteen years ago, poultry net profit fell by 24%, falling to €48 million, while their turnover increased by 24%, reaching €2.5 billion. This situation highlights the economic challenge of maintaining a stable net profit despite fluctuations in turnover. It requires courage to implement effective strategies to manage costs, optimize revenues and maintain profitability in the years to come, taking into account changing economic conditions and industry challenges. Currently these figures are on the rise.

Other species: Besides these main species, Spain also raises horses, goats, rabbits, ostriches and other animals for various productions, ranging from meat to wool to eggs.

The economic implications:

Livestock has a major impact on a country's economy, particularly in terms of jobs created, value added to agriculture, foreign trade (exports and imports), and contribution to GDP.
In 2020, the agriculture, livestock, forestry and fishing sectors in Spain recorded record revenues of 35,196 million euros, marking a historic financial performance. However, despite this success, these sectors have seen their relative share in the overall Spanish economy decline. Regarding employment, the agricultural sector observed an increase with 1.152 million people affiliated to social security at the end of the year, representing an increase of 7,000 people compared to year n-1. Over time, the livestock sector in particular and agriculture loses its weight in the economy. But during the health crisis, the sector gained weight to reach 3.4%, representing the best performance over the last 18 years.
How can we explain the relative decline of the agricultural, livestock, forestry and fishing sectors in Spain's overall economy, despite their positive financial performance and employment growth?