Animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand
New Zealand: Animals slaughtered for meat was 4.68 million in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
4.68 million
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
13th
of 198 countries
All-time high
4.76 million
in 2016
All-time low
2.25 million
in 1966
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand, 1961–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 4.68 million for animals slaughtered for meat in 2024.
That represents a change of up 1.0% on the previous year and up 9.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand peaked at 4.76 million in 2016 and was at its lowest, 2.25 million, in 1966.
New Zealand ranks 13th of 198 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 2.29 million | — |
| 1962 | 2.64 million | +15.0% |
| 1963 | 2.69 million | +2.2% |
| 1964 | 2.68 million | -0.6% |
| 1965 | 2.37 million | -11.6% |
| 1966 | 2.25 million | -5.0% |
| 1967 | 2.42 million | +7.4% |
| 1968 | 2.71 million | +12.3% |
| 1969 | 3.03 million | +11.7% |
| 1970 | 3.13 million | +3.2% |
| 1971 | 2.89 million | -7.8% |
| 1972 | 2.83 million | -2.1% |
| 1973 | 3.08 million | +9.1% |
| 1974 | 3.03 million | -1.6% |
| 1975 | 3.58 million | +17.9% |
| 1976 | 3.87 million | +8.1% |
| 1977 | 3.57 million | -7.7% |
| 1978 | 3.64 million | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 3.21 million | -12.0% |
| 1980 | 2.98 million | -7.1% |
| 1981 | 3.05 million | +2.4% |
| 1982 | 3.24 million | +6.3% |
| 1983 | 3.12 million | -3.9% |
| 1984 | 2.60 million | -16.7% |
| 1985 | 2.82 million | +8.5% |
| 1986 | 2.83 million | +0.6% |
| 1987 | 3.18 million | +12.3% |
| 1988 | 3.18 million | -0.2% |
| 1989 | 3.20 million | +0.8% |
| 1990 | 2.71 million | -15.5% |
| 1991 | 2.86 million | +5.8% |
| 1992 | 2.91 million | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 2.95 million | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 2.93 million | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 3.14 million | +7.2% |
| 1996 | 3.83 million | +22.0% |
| 1997 | 3.76 million | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 3.88 million | +3.0% |
| 1999 | 3.55 million | -8.3% |
| 2000 | 3.52 million | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 3.27 million | -6.9% |
| 2002 | 3.41 million | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 3.75 million | +9.9% |
| 2004 | 4.21 million | +12.4% |
| 2005 | 3.89 million | -7.6% |
| 2006 | 3.68 million | -5.4% |
| 2007 | 3.69 million | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 3.69 million | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 3.93 million | +6.5% |
| 2010 | 3.82 million | -2.8% |
| 2011 | 3.91 million | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 3.86 million | -1.5% |
| 2013 | 4.04 million | +4.8% |
| 2014 | 4.29 million | +6.3% |
| 2015 | 4.75 million | +10.7% |
| 2016 | 4.76 million | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 4.38 million | -8.0% |
| 2018 | 4.37 million | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 4.50 million | +3.0% |
| 2020 | 4.62 million | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 4.73 million | +2.3% |
| 2022 | 4.58 million | -3.1% |
| 2023 | 4.64 million | +1.2% |
| 2024 | 4.68 million | +1.0% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 4.68 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 161,025, 29.1× the median. (64 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 4.68 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 117,197, 40.0× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.57 million | 2.25 million | 3.03 million | 9 |
| 1970s | 3.28 million | 2.83 million | 3.87 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 3.02 million | 2.60 million | 3.24 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.25 million | 2.71 million | 3.88 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.70 million | 3.27 million | 4.21 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.27 million | 3.82 million | 4.76 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.65 million | 4.58 million | 4.73 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More agriculture & rural data for New Zealand
- Cropland extent over the long-term, annual growth rate 1.54 % change on previous year (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Cropland extent over the long-term, per capita 0.1262 hectares per person (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, annual growth rate -1.76 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agricultural area over the long-term, per capita 1.76 hectares per person (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual -10.07 % change on previous year (2023)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0401 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,976 current US$ per person (2023)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.275 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand?
- Animals slaughtered for meat in New Zealand was 4.68 million in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest animals slaughtered for meat recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 4.76 million in 2016.
- What is the lowest animals slaughtered for meat recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.25 million in 1966.
- How does New Zealand rank for animals slaughtered for meat?
- New Zealand ranks 13th out of 198 countries with data for 2024.
- Is animals slaughtered for meat rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Animals slaughtered for meat. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).