England abattoir numbers – cattle and sheep

1 September 2026
This data shows the number and size of English red meat, cattle and sheep abattoirs operating each year.

Latest update

Table 1. Red meat abattoirs in England

Type of abattoir202320242025
All abattoirs 147 143 137
Killing cattle 121 118 115
Killing sheep  116 115 111
Killing pigs 84 81 80

Source: AHDB data based on abattoirs operating in the calendar year.

Table 2. Cattle abattoirs by size in England, 2025

Size band
(head)
Number of
abattoirs
Total throughput (head)Share of throughput (%)
1-1,000 49 15,773 1.0%
1,001-5,000 32 82,320 5.1%
5,001-10,000 5 42,287 2.6%
10,001-20,000 3 52,612 3.3%
20,001-30,000 3 70,410 4.4%
30,001-50,000 9 325,540 20.1%
>50,000 14 1,027,476 63.6%
Total 115 1,616,418 100.0%

Source: AHDB data based on abattoirs operating in the calendar year.

Table 3. Sheep abattoirs by size in England, 2025

Size band
(head)
Number of
abattoirs
Total throughput (head)Share of throughput (%)
1-1,000 23 11,426 0.1%
1,001-5,000 25 65,069 0.7%
5,001-10,000 12 84,280 0.9%
10,001-20,000 9 113,219 1.2%
20,001-30,000 5 120,663 1.3%
30,001-50,000 6 228,913 2.4%
50,000 - 100,000 8 517,460 5.5%
> 100,001 23 8,247,520 87.8%
Total 111 9,388,550 100.0%

Source: AHDB data based on abattoirs operating in the calendar year.

Additional information

Data based on abattoirs operating during the calendar year.

Contact us

This dataset was produced by our Data and Analysis Team. To find out more about the team, please visit the Data and Analysis team page.

If you need any further help, please email Dawn, Lydia or Sue at econ@ahdb.org.uk 

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