Italy: Sheep and goat milk and derivatives

Published 2024년 5월 7일

Tridge summary

Over the past decade, the European Union has seen a significant decrease in its sheep and goat herd, with numbers dropping by approximately 10 million, or 12%, to around 6.9 million. This downward trend is expected to persist, with sheep meat production projected to reach approximately 607 thousand tons in 2035. In Italy, which houses the majority of these animals, there was a recovery in Easter 2024 slaughters after a previous reduction in 2023. The production of Pecorino Romano cheese, one of the country's top cheeses, has seen an increase, despite a decrease in the availability of milk from sheep. However, high prices and reduced demand have impacted the export of this cheese, leading to a drop in volumes. Importation of live sheep and meat has risen, though retail sales of pecorino cheeses have declined due to the high prices. There has also been a decrease in the domestic consumption of sheep and goat meat, but this trend reversed in the first quarter of 2024.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

Global and European context Over the last ten years the EU has recorded a decline of sheep and goat herd of approximately 10 million heads (-12%) and, according to European Commission estimates, this structural decline will continue also in the coming years, bringing meat production to approximately 607 thousand tons in 2035. Production situation in Italy There are approximately 6.9 million on the national territory garments (-9.3% compared to 2019), of which little less than 6 million sheep, highly concentrated at the level territorial. After the recorded reduction in 2023, Easter 2024 slaughters resulted recovering (+5% compared to last year year). As regards dairy production, despite the lower availability of milk sheep at a national level, the production of Pecorino Romano is further increasing in the top five months in the 2023/2024 year (+14% on a trend basis in period October 2023-February 2024). Price trendsAfter the record prices of summer 2023, the price lists of ...

Source: ITIsmea