Sheep — Stocks in South Africa
South Africa: Sheep — Stocks was 21.43 million An in 2023. ▼ Falling
Sheep — Stocks in South Africa, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in An.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 21.43 million An for sheep — stocks in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 12.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sheep — stocks in South Africa peaked at 40.31 million An in 1966 and was at its lowest, 21.43 million An, in 2023.
South Africa ranks 22nd of 180 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Sheep — Stocks in South Africa, year by year
| Year | An | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 37.90 million An | — |
| 1962 | 38.00 million An | +0.3% |
| 1963 | 38.00 million An | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 36.67 million An | -3.5% |
| 1965 | 37.00 million An | +0.9% |
| 1966 | 40.31 million An | +8.9% |
| 1967 | 38.83 million An | -3.7% |
| 1968 | 39.54 million An | +1.8% |
| 1969 | 39.35 million An | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 34.29 million An | -12.9% |
| 1971 | 33.12 million An | -3.4% |
| 1972 | 30.24 million An | -8.7% |
| 1973 | 30.74 million An | +1.7% |
| 1974 | 30.30 million An | -1.5% |
| 1975 | 30.99 million An | +2.3% |
| 1976 | 31.00 million An | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 31.96 million An | +3.1% |
| 1978 | 32.00 million An | +0.1% |
| 1979 | 31.59 million An | -1.3% |
| 1980 | 31.64 million An | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 31.65 million An | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 34.20 million An | +8.0% |
| 1983 | 33.20 million An | -2.9% |
| 1984 | 31.27 million An | -5.8% |
| 1985 | 30.26 million An | -3.2% |
| 1986 | 29.48 million An | -2.6% |
| 1987 | 29.75 million An | +0.9% |
| 1988 | 29.64 million An | -0.4% |
| 1989 | 30.93 million An | +4.4% |
| 1990 | 32.66 million An | +5.6% |
| 1991 | 32.58 million An | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 30.96 million An | -5.0% |
| 1993 | 28.93 million An | -6.5% |
| 1994 | 29.13 million An | +0.7% |
| 1995 | 28.78 million An | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 28.93 million An | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 29.19 million An | +0.9% |
| 1998 | 29.34 million An | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 28.68 million An | -2.3% |
| 2000 | 28.55 million An | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 28.80 million An | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 26.00 million An | -9.7% |
| 2003 | 25.82 million An | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 25.36 million An | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 25.33 million An | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 24.98 million An | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 25.08 million An | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 25.09 million An | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 24.99 million An | -0.4% |
| 2010 | 24.50 million An | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 24.30 million An | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 24.39 million An | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 24.53 million An | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 24.12 million An | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 23.94 million An | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 23.29 million An | -2.7% |
| 2017 | 22.69 million An | -2.6% |
| 2018 | 22.50 million An | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 22.09 million An | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 21.60 million An | -2.2% |
| 2021 | 21.46 million An | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 21.43 million An | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 21.43 million An | -0.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 21.43 million An is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 587,073 An, 36.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 21.43 million An is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1.47 million An, 14.6× the median. (43 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 38.40 million An | 36.67 million An | 40.31 million An | 9 |
| 1970s | 31.62 million An | 30.24 million An | 34.29 million An | 10 |
| 1980s | 31.20 million An | 29.48 million An | 34.20 million An | 10 |
| 1990s | 29.92 million An | 28.68 million An | 32.66 million An | 10 |
| 2000s | 26.00 million An | 24.98 million An | 28.80 million An | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.63 million An | 22.09 million An | 24.53 million An | 10 |
| 2020s | 21.48 million An | 21.43 million An | 21.60 million An | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 19 Kenya 23.21 million An compare
- 20 Ethiopia PDR 23.20 million An compare
- 21 Brazil 21.79 million An compare
- 23 Morocco 20.66 million An compare
- 24 Uzbekistan 20.53 million An compare
- 25 Russian Federation 19.08 million An compare
More environment data for South Africa
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly 5.46 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly 8.52 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.275 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.05 °C (2025)
- Wood-based panels — Production, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.59 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.2953 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sheep — stocks in South Africa?
- Sheep — stocks in South Africa was 21.43 million An in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest sheep — stocks recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 40.31 million An in 1966.
- What is the lowest sheep — stocks recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.43 million An in 2023.
- How does South Africa rank for sheep — stocks?
- South Africa ranks 22nd out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is sheep — stocks rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Sheep — Stocks. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The Livestock Manure domain of FAOSTAT contains estimates of nitrogen (N) inputs to agricultural soils from livestock manure. Data on the N losses to air and water are also disseminated. These estimates are compiled using official FAOSTAT statistics of animal stocks and by applying the internationally approved Guidelines of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Data are available by country, with global coverage and updated annually.The following elements are disseminated: 1) Stocks; 2) Amount excreted in manure (N content); 3) Manure left on pasture (N content); 4) Manure left on pasture that volatilises (N content); 5) Manure left on pasture that leaches (N content); 6) Manure treated (N content); 7) Losses from manure treated (N content); 8) Manure applied to soils (N content); 9) Manure applied to soils that volatilises (N content); 10) Manure applied to soils that leaches (N content).