The number of cattle increased by about 19,000, while the number of poultry reached a record high of 8.5 million, according to figures released by the Federal Statistics Office, reports swissinfo.

The number of farms and the area of land used for agriculture continue to decline. In 2008, there were 60,894 farms in the country as a whole, down by around 870, or 1.4 per cent, from 2007. In 1984 there were still nearly 100,000.

The average size of farms is growing, although about one-third are less than 10 hectares, and one-third are between 10 and 20 hectares.

Despite the fact that the size of the average farm increased, the total area used for farming fell. Also down was the total number of people employed on farms, as well as the number working in agriculture full time. Farming currently employs about 169,000 people.

swissinfo reports that the number of organic farms also dropped, going below 6,000 for the first time since 2002.