Number of cattle in Denmark
Denmark: Number of cattle was 1.41 million animals in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
1.41 million animals
Change on year
down 1.5%
World rank
100th
of 197 countries
All-time high
3.59 million animals
in 1961
All-time low
1.41 million animals
in 2024
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Number of cattle in Denmark, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in animals.
Analysis
The most recent figure for number of cattle in Denmark is 1.41 million animals, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 64 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.5% on the previous year and down 9.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of cattle in Denmark peaked at 3.59 million animals in 1961 and was at its lowest, 1.41 million animals, in 2024.
That places Denmark 100th out of 197 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 64 years of available data.
Number of cattle in Denmark, year by year
| Year | animals | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.59 million animals | — |
| 1962 | 3.50 million animals | -2.5% |
| 1963 | 3.34 million animals | -4.6% |
| 1964 | 3.28 million animals | -2.0% |
| 1965 | 3.35 million animals | +2.1% |
| 1966 | 3.37 million animals | +0.8% |
| 1967 | 3.28 million animals | -2.7% |
| 1968 | 3.14 million animals | -4.3% |
| 1969 | 3.00 million animals | -4.5% |
| 1970 | 2.84 million animals | -5.2% |
| 1971 | 2.72 million animals | -4.2% |
| 1972 | 2.78 million animals | +2.1% |
| 1973 | 2.96 million animals | +6.4% |
| 1974 | 3.10 million animals | +4.8% |
| 1975 | 3.06 million animals | -1.3% |
| 1976 | 3.10 million animals | +1.2% |
| 1977 | 3.10 million animals | +0.1% |
| 1978 | 3.08 million animals | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 3.04 million animals | -1.5% |
| 1980 | 2.96 million animals | -2.5% |
| 1981 | 2.91 million animals | -1.6% |
| 1982 | 2.86 million animals | -1.8% |
| 1983 | 2.85 million animals | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 2.75 million animals | -3.6% |
| 1985 | 2.62 million animals | -4.8% |
| 1986 | 2.50 million animals | -4.7% |
| 1987 | 2.35 million animals | -5.8% |
| 1988 | 2.26 million animals | -3.8% |
| 1989 | 2.22 million animals | -1.8% |
| 1990 | 2.24 million animals | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 2.22 million animals | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 2.19 million animals | -1.4% |
| 1993 | 2.19 million animals | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 2.10 million animals | -4.1% |
| 1995 | 2.09 million animals | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 2.09 million animals | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 2.00 million animals | -4.3% |
| 1998 | 1.98 million animals | -1.3% |
| 1999 | 1.89 million animals | -4.6% |
| 2000 | 1.87 million animals | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 1.91 million animals | +2.1% |
| 2002 | 1.80 million animals | -5.8% |
| 2003 | 1.72 million animals | -4.0% |
| 2004 | 1.65 million animals | -4.6% |
| 2005 | 1.57 million animals | -4.6% |
| 2006 | 1.53 million animals | -2.2% |
| 2007 | 1.57 million animals | +2.0% |
| 2008 | 1.56 million animals | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 1.54 million animals | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 1.57 million animals | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 1.57 million animals | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 1.61 million animals | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 1.61 million animals | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 1.56 million animals | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 1.55 million animals | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 1.57 million animals | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 1.55 million animals | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 1.53 million animals | -1.0% |
| 2019 | 1.50 million animals | -2.0% |
| 2020 | 1.50 million animals | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 1.48 million animals | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 1.47 million animals | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 1.43 million animals | -2.1% |
| 2024 | 1.41 million animals | -1.5% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 1.41 million animals is above the median for high income countries, which is 595,200 animals, 2.4× the median. (63 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 1.41 million animals is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.40 million animals, 1.0× the median. (49 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.32 million animals | 3.00 million animals | 3.59 million animals | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.98 million animals | 2.72 million animals | 3.10 million animals | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.63 million animals | 2.22 million animals | 2.96 million animals | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.10 million animals | 1.89 million animals | 2.24 million animals | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.67 million animals | 1.53 million animals | 1.91 million animals | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.56 million animals | 1.50 million animals | 1.61 million animals | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.46 million animals | 1.41 million animals | 1.50 million animals | 5 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
More agriculture & rural data for Denmark
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 37.33 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0117 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 900.07 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.7939 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1115 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.2% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.2% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.4% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 1.9% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of cattle in Denmark?
- Number of cattle in Denmark was 1.41 million animals in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of cattle recorded in Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 3.59 million animals in 1961.
- What is the lowest number of cattle recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.41 million animals in 2024.
- How does Denmark rank for number of cattle?
- Denmark ranks 100th out of 197 countries with data for 2024.
- Is number of cattle rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Denmark data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of cattle. 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).