Relevance

Animal production statistics cover three main sub-domains based on three pieces of relevant legislation:

• Livestock and meat statistics are collected under Regulation (EC) No. 1165/2008.  They cover monthly meat production, as activity of slaughterhouses and annual livestock statistics.
• Milk and milk product statistics are collected under Decision 97/80/EC implementing Directive 96/16/EC.  They cover farm production and utilisation of milk, collection and production activity by dairies and statistics on the structure of dairies.
• Statistics on eggs for hatching and farmyard poultry chicks are collected under Regulation (EC) No. 617/2008 for implementing Regulation (EC) No. 1234/2007 (Single CMO Regulation).  They cover annual statistics on the structure and the monthly activity of hatcheries as well as reports on the external trade of chicks.

Methodological description

Data regarding monthly slaughtered livestock are obtained from the public abattoir for beef and pigs, while data for broilers are requested through the private slaughterhouses. The annual livestock data for cattle, sheep, goats and pigs are obtained through the national livestock database compiled by the Veterinary Regulation Directorate (VRD) within the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal rights (MAFA). Statistics on eggs for hatching and farmyard poultry chicks’ data are also collected directly from the VRD. Milk statistics are collected directly from the private dairy plant. 

Accuracy and reliability of data

Animal production data are checked for consistency and compared with data from previous months. In case discrepancies emerge, the respective administrative sources are contacted again to update or verify the figures. 

Timeliness and punctuality of data

At a national level, no news release is published.  Animal production statistics data are compiled and transmitted to Eurostat within the stipulated timeframes according to the sub-domain in question.

Accessibility and clarity of data

Monthly data related to slaughtered livestock are included in StatDB; the NSO’s on-line Statistical database. Moreover, a number of tables are included in the selected agriculture indicators.

A quality report on crop statistics is compiled according to an established structure and sent to Eurostat every 3 years.  

A metadata report is produced at a national level and is available on the NSO’s metadata website.  

Coherence and comparability / consistency of data

The data are comparable with that of other countries due to the adoption of common methodological guidelines.

On a local level, livestock statistics are comparable as from 2002 onwards.  Meat statistics, milk and milk products are comparable from 1995 onwards, while hatcheries data are comparable from 2004 onwards. 

All the data collected for each of the domains mentioned above are used to compile the Economic Accounts for Agriculture and therefore data are comparable between different statistical domains.

The National Accounts section within the NSO makes use of the collected data which ensure internal consistency.

Metadata