Belgium has slaughtered significantly more cattle in 2024 than the year before. The recovery on the cattle market is particularly notable, but the number of poultry slaughters is also increasing.
A clear increase can be seen, particularly on the cattle market. Last year, Belgium exported 809.000 cattle. This is an increase of 4,9% compared to the previous year. This means that the slaughtering rate of cattle seems to have passed its low point. In 2022, the slaughtering rate reached its low point, but the number of slaughters has increased again in the last two years.
Meanwhile, the number of chicken slaughters increased by 2,9%. After a sharp decline in recent years, the number of pig slaughters is stagnating. The slaughter figure rose by 0,4% last year.
In terms of slaughter weight, the pig market achieved the clear number 1 position. 54,5% of the meat produced was pork. Chicken meat accounted for 30,6% of the meat production and beef production for 14,4%. On a monthly basis, 25,8 million chickens were slaughtered in Belgium. The number of pigs slaughtered meanwhile amounted to 783.000 and the number of cattle to 67.400 per month.