Military actions, rising production costs, relocation, and market uncertainty are holding back farmers from increasing their cow herds, reports Georghii Kukhaleishvili, an analyst at the Association of Milk Producers. According to preliminary data from the State Statistics Service, as of August 1, 2025, there were 2.1515 million head of cattle in Ukraine's household and industrial sectors, including 1.1404 million cows.
Compared to July 1, 2025, the cattle population in Ukraine decreased by 18 thousand head (-0.8%), and the number of cows decreased by 5.8 thousand head (-0.5%). Compared to August 1, 2024, the cattle population decreased by 194 thousand head (-8%), including cows, which decreased by 106 thousand head (-9%). Approximately 43% of the animals are kept on industrial farms, and 57% are in household farms.
The industrial sector holds 923.5 thousand head of cattle, which is 2 thousand head more (+0.2%) than on July 1, 2025. The cow herd stands at 381.6 thousand cows, a decrease of 500 head (-0.1%) over the past month. Over the past year, the cattle population on farms has decreased by 1.7 thousand head (-0.18%), but the number of cows has increased by 1.4 thousand head (+0.4%).
The household sector has 1.228 million head of cattle, which is 20 thousand head less (-1.6%) compared to July 1, 2025. The number of cows in household farms as of August 1, 2025, was 758.8 thousand head, which is 5 thousand head less (-0.7%) than a month ago. Over the past year, the number of cattle in household farms has decreased by 192 thousand head (-14%), and the number of cows has decreased by 108 thousand head (-12%).
According to preliminary data from the State Statistics Service, the largest increase in the number of cows was recorded on agricultural enterprises in Mykolaiv region (+12%), Khmelnytskyi region (+9%), Rivne region (+7%), Ivano-Frankivsk region (+4%), and Ternopil region (+4%) compared to August 1 of last year.
Georghii Kukhaleishvili notes that the reduction in the cattle population is a long-standing problem in Ukraine due to the lack of an effective state support program for dairy farming. The war has only worsened the situation. There continues to be a sharp reduction in the herd population in the East and South. Agricultural enterprises are relocating cows from Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kharkiv regions to safer regions in Western and Central Ukraine amid increased Russian missile and bombing attacks on border and frontline settlements. As a result of this relocation, Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, and Ternopil regions have joined the leading regions in terms of herd size.
Most farms in Ukraine were built in the 1970s and 1980s, and they no longer meet the requirements for animal housing. The lack of suitable premises for cows creates preconditions for a further reduction in the herd size. Many farmers are not investing in increasing their cow herds during the war as they are experiencing a shortage of working capital. According to the study "Ukraine: The Impact of War on the Profitability of Agricultural Production," conducted by the UCAB, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, with the support of GFDRR, farmers' production costs are rising faster than prices for finished products due to the increasing cost of feed, electricity, the devaluation of the hryvnia, and a decrease in the purchasing power of the population.
Regionally, about 50% of the total cattle population in all categories of farms is located in the following regions:
- Khmelnytskyi region – 197.2 thousand head
- Poltava region – 179.1 thousand head
- Vinnytsia region – 172.3 thousand head
- Odesa region – 135.2 thousand head
- Ternopil region – 134.7 thousand head
- Cherkasy region – 127.3 thousand head
- Chernihiv region – 125.7 thousand head
Press service of the Association of Milk Producers
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