All keepers of sheep and goats are required to complete an inventory once a year.
This is part of the Sheep and Goats (Records, Identification and Movement) (Wales) Order 2015.
The annual inventory is a record of the number of sheep and goats on a holding and should include:
- breeding sheep
- rams
- ram lambs
- store and finished lambs
- cull ewes/rams, and
- other sheep and goats
You must also record the number of sheep and goats on your holding in your on-farm ‘Flock Record’.
You must list in the inventory all the CPHs where you are the owner of sheep and/or goats. This includes common land and temporary land.
If you do not complete the inventory, you are more likely to be selected for an inspection.
Important Changes
The way in which the inventory is run in Wales will be changing. To bring the annual inventory in line with other UK nations, the date of the inventory will now be 1 December. The information required will remain the same.
There are two significant changes:
- change of Annual Inventory date
The date of all future annual inventories will be 1 December. The next date you will be asked to record your sheep and/or goat numbers will be 1 December 2024.
- move to an online Annual Inventory
From now on, we will no longer issue the usual paper inventory forms.
In future the way to submit your inventory will be via your EIDCymru online account. We encourage keepers who do not have an account to register for one over the summer. Colleagues at the EIDCymru bureau are happy to help you register for an online account. They can also answer any queries you may have. They are available:
- by email at contact@eidcymru.org, or
- by telephone: 01970 636959
We recognise this may be a change to the way in which you have previously completed your inventory. We encourage you to contact EIDCymru as soon as possible. They can help with any queries you may have about the new process.
Before the inventory opens, any keeper without an EIDCymru account will receive a letter with an online link as an alternative method of completing the inventory. If there are exceptional circumstances you are advised to contact EIDCymru.
If you wish to discuss the change, you can speak to colleagues from:
- EIDCymru
- the Farm Liaison Service, or
- Farming Connect
They will be at the Royal Welsh Show, regional shows and livestock markets. They will be happy to provide further guidance.