I propose to take Questions Nos. 222 and 223 together.
My Department uses the TRACES system to record sheep movements in terms of both imports and exports for the purposes of slaughter, breeding and fattening.
Traditionally, most live sheep imported into Ireland have come from the UK, including Northern Ireland. In 2021, a total of 367,936 sheep were imported. The below table provides both the country of origin and the quantity of sheep imported each month in 2021. My Department does not collect or collate live sheep imports on a weekly basis.
Sheep Imports 2021
Month
|
Northern Ireland
|
France
|
Belgium
|
Holland
|
Total
|
January
|
35,034
|
|
|
|
|
February
|
26,160
|
|
|
|
|
March
|
22,469
|
|
|
|
|
April
|
19,053
|
|
|
|
|
May
|
20,394
|
|
|
|
|
June
|
18,919
|
|
|
41
|
|
July
|
37,816
|
|
99
|
|
|
August
|
38,842
|
11
|
|
|
|
September
|
40,947
|
15
|
|
83
|
|
October
|
30,462
|
|
68
|
|
|
November
|
42,995
|
|
|
|
|
December
|
34,494
|
24
|
|
10
|
|
Total
|
367,585
|
50
|
167
|
134
|
367,936
|