Which province has the most dairy farms?

In 2017, 18.056 dairy farms were counted in the Netherlands. In 2016 there were still 17.910. But in which province do we find the most dairy farms? A new top 5, compiled by Statistics Netherlands, provides the answer.

The more than 18.000 dairy farms in the Netherlands together kept 1.693.385 cows. This brings the average number of cows per farm to 93. Last year that number was still 97. Something that can be well explained by the Phosphate Reduction Plan Regulation 2017.

the podium
The province of Overijssel is on the highest step of the podium. About 2017 dairy farms were registered in this province in 3.213. Together they kept 270.248 cows. That brings an average of 84 cows per farm. That corresponds to the most popular size class in this province (80 to 120 dairy cows). However, if we look at the average number of cows per farm, this province is only in ninth place.

The province of Gelderland is in second place. 3.087 dairy farms were counted in this province. Together they kept 253.931 dairy cows. That means an average of 82 dairy cows per farm. In this province, too, this corresponds to the most popular size class (80 to 120 cows). However, for this province, Gelderland is also falling considerably when it comes to the average number of cows per farm. The province then drops to tenth place.

The bronze medal is for the province of Friesland. In 2017, this province had approximately 2.711 dairy farms. Together they kept 306.960 dairy cows. That means an average of 113 cows per farm. This corresponds to the most popular size class in this region (120-180 dairy cows). If we look at the average number of cows per farm, this province is in fourth place.

Just next to the boat
The province of North Brabant is in fourth place. In 2017, 2.454 dairy farms were registered in this province. The total number of cows is 242.141. That brings an average of 98 cows per farm. This means that the most popular size class is also 80 to 120 dairy cows. However, this is closely followed by the class 120 to 180 cows. If we only look at the average number of cows per farm, Noord-Brabant comes in fifth place.

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The province of South Holland is in fifth place. In 2017 1.291 dairy farms were counted in this province. Together they kept 104.928 dairy cows, which brings the average number of cows per farm to 81. The most popular size class in this region is 80 to 120 dairy cows. However, the 50 to 80 dairy cow class is also popular in this region. If we only look at the number of cows per farm, this province is in eleventh place.

On average, the most cows per farm
If we look at the average number of cows per farm, the province of Flevoland is at the top. This province had only 2017 dairy farms in 262, but together they kept 36.945 cows. This brings the average number of cows per farm to 141. It is therefore not surprising that the most popular size class in this province is more than 250 dairy cows.

The province of Groningen follows in second place. About 2017 dairy farms were counted in this province in 936. The number of cows in this province is 107.914. That brings the average to 115 cows per farm. The most popular size class in this province is 120 to 180 dairy cows.

Number of farms with dairy cows and number of cows (2017)

Kimberly Baker

Kimberly Bakker is an all-round editor at Boerenbusiness. She also has an eye for the social media channels of Boerenbusiness.

k.baker @boerenbusiness. Nl

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