Britain's milking herd continues to shrink, new data shows 10 June 2021 | by FarmingUK Team | Dairy, News The latest data released by the BCMS shows that the GB milking herd has declined again Britain's milking herd continues to shrink as new figures show another reduction compared to the same point in the previous year. As at 1 April 2021, there was a total of 1.67 million cows in the GB dairy herd, according to data published by the British Cattle Movement Service (BCMS). This is a 2 percent reduction compared to the same point in the previous year, the equivalent of 32,000 head. The milking herd has been on steady downwards trajectory for several years now.