Based on an annual estimate of approximately 704,000,000, derived from FAOSTAT — Production: Crops and livestock products.
1,928,767
per day
80,365
per hour
1,339
per minute
22
per second
58,666,666
per month
487,610,857
so far this year (est.)
In Brief
FAOSTAT reports 704,000,000 animals slaughtered for sheep meat worldwide in 2024. Its “Producing Animals/Slaughtered” measure is an annual count of animals used for sheep meat; it is not a live-population estimate or a measure of sheep-meat tonnage.
FAOSTAT reports 704 million animals slaughtered to produce sheep meat worldwide in 2024. The live counter visualizes that annual animal-count measure as an estimated rate across the current calendar year; it is not a direct real-time tally.
Key Statistics
Animals slaughtered for meat
704 million
FAOSTAT, 2024
In Depth
What does the Sheep counter measure?
The counter uses FAOSTAT's 2024 World count of 704,000,000 animals in the item “Meat, sheep” and the element “Producing Animals/Slaughtered.” It is an individual-animal measure, not a count of sheep alive at one time and not a mass measure such as tonnes of sheep meat.
The site spreads FAOSTAT's annual 2024 total across the current calendar year and updates the resulting estimated rate continuously. “Today,” “This Year,” and the since-arrival display are calculations from that annual baseline, not direct real-time measurements.
FAOSTAT's 2024 figure is an animal count for sheep slaughtered for meat, not a live sheep-population estimate or a measure of sheep-meat weight.
FAOSTAT labels the underlying element “Producing Animals/Slaughtered” for the item “Meat, sheep.”
Frequently Asked Questions
How many sheep were slaughtered for meat worldwide in 2024?
FAOSTAT reports 704,000,000 animals slaughtered for sheep meat worldwide in 2024.
How many sheep are slaughtered for meat each day?
About 1,928,767 sheep are slaughtered for meat per day when FAOSTAT's 2024 annual count of 704,000,000 is expressed as a daily rate.
How many sheep are slaughtered for meat each second?
About 22 sheep are slaughtered for meat per second when FAOSTAT's 2024 annual count is expressed as a continuous annual rate.
What does the FAOSTAT sheep figure measure?
It is the World total for FAOSTAT's “Meat, sheep” item and “Producing Animals/Slaughtered” element, measured in animals. It is not a live sheep population or a meat-weight total.
Does this counter measure sheep population or meat tonnage?
No. It measures individual animals slaughtered for sheep meat in the FAOSTAT series, not the number of sheep alive or tonnes of sheep meat produced.
Does the source distinguish lamb and mutton?
No age-specific lamb or mutton breakdown is provided in this World animal-count record. The FAOSTAT item is “Meat, sheep,” so the counter should not be read as a separate tally of only lambs or only older sheep.
The page uses FAOSTAT's released 2024 World value for “Meat, sheep” and the element “Producing Animals/Slaughtered,” reported in animals. HumanConsumption.Live divides that annual count across the current calendar year to visualize an estimated pace; it is not a live feed from FAOSTAT.