diff --git a/xarray/core/duck_array_ops.py b/xarray/core/duck_array_ops.py
index 0c7d40113d6..9dc09e599a3 100644
--- a/xarray/core/duck_array_ops.py
+++ b/xarray/core/duck_array_ops.py
@@ -246,9 +246,6 @@ def astype(data, dtype, *, xp=None, **kwargs):
     if xp is None:
         xp = get_array_namespace(data)
 
-    if xp == np:
-        # numpy currently doesn't have a astype:
-        return data.astype(dtype, **kwargs)
     return xp.astype(data, dtype, **kwargs)