Animal production statistics cover three main sub-domains based on three pieces of relevant legislation and related gentlemen’s agreements.

European Economic Area countries (EEA - Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) are requested to provide milk statistics, with the exception of those related to home consumption, as stated in Annex XXI of the EEA Agreement. Liechtenstein is exempted in the Agreement, only Norway is concerned.

The Agreement between the European Community and the Swiss Confederation on cooperation in the field of statistics states that Switzerland must provide Eurostat with national milk statistics and, after 2013, livestock and meat statistics.

The same statistics are requested from the candidate and potential candidate countries as EU acquis .

The statistical tables disseminated by Eurostat are organised, under Animal production (apro_anip), into three groups of tables on Milk and milk products (apro_mk), Livestock and meat (apro_mt) and Poultry farming (apro_ec). This later label covers statistics on hatcheries and trade in chicks and on production of eggs for consumption. The regional animal production statistics collected on livestock (agr_r_animal) and on cows’ milk production on farms (agr_r_milk_pr) are disseminated separately.

Due to the change in the legal basis or in the methodology, the time series may be broken. This is indicated by a flag in the tables.