Mid-Year Sheep Report Released

July 28, 2006 - As of July 1, 2006, all sheep and lamb inventory in the United States totaled 7.77 million head, down slightly from the 7.8 million head reported one year earlier, but still 2-percent above the July 1, 2004, inventory of 7.65 million head. The slight overall reduction was due to a decrease in numbers in Region 1 (Ariz., Calif., Idaho, Nev., Ore., and Wash.) and Region 2 (Texas and N.M.).

This information was released on July 21 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agriculture Statistics Service (NASS) in its July 2006 Sheep and Goat Report.

Breeding sheep as well as market sheep and lambs were also reduced slightly from July 1, 2005. Breeding sheep inventory came in at 4.64 million head, down from 4.66 million head in 2005 while market sheep and lambs registered 3.14 million head, down from the 2005 level of 3.15 million head.

It is projected that the 2006 lamb crop in the United States will total 4.1 million head, down 1 percent from the 2005 lamb crop of 4.13 million head and equal to the 2004 lamb crop.

"While it is unfortunate that inventory numbers appear to be down slightly from last year, this is not entirely unexpected," commented Paul Frischknecht, president of the American Sheep Industry Association. "Severe fires in Texas and the extreme drought in many parts of the country have had a negative impact on the feed conditions and attributed to the very small decline in inventory numbers."

This is the first time NASS reported goat estimates in the mid-year inventory report. All goats inventory on July 1, 2006, totaled 3.47 million head, up 3 percent from the estimated 3.35 million head the previous July. Meat goats account for 2.86 million head with milk and angora inventories being reported at 320,000 and 285,000, respectively.

The entire report can be viewed at: http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/reports/nassr/livestock/pgg-bbs.

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