Agriculture in New Zealand is the largest sector of the tradable economy, contributing about two-thirds of exported goods in 2006-7. For the year ended March 2002, agricultural exports were valued at over $14.8 billion. The New Zealand agricultural sector is unique in being the only developed country to be totally exposed to the international markets sincesubsidies, tax concessions and price supports were removed in the 1980s.[2] Pastoral farming is the major land use but there are increases in land area devoted to horticulture.
New Zealand is a member of the Cairns Group which is seeking to have free trade in agricultural goods.
In Northland, the major form of pastoral farming is beef cattle. In the Waikato and Taranaki areas, dairy cattle predominate. Through the rest of New Zealand, sheep farming is the major rural activity, with beef cattle farming in the hills and high country, and dairying increasing in Canterbury, Otago andSouthland
Milling of New Zealand's extensive native forests was one of the earliest industries in the settlement of the country. The long, straight hardwood from thekauri was ideal for ship masts and spars. As the new colony was established, timber was the most common building material, and vast areas of native forest were cleared. Rimu, tōtara, matai, and miro were the favoured timbers. The Monterrey Pine, Pinus radiata was introduced to New Zealand in the 1850s. It thrived in the conditions, reaching maturity in 28 years, much faster than in its native California. It was found to grow well in the infertile acidic soil.
New Zealand had 2,602 beekeepers at the end of 2007, who owned 313,399 hives. Total honey production was 9700 tonnes. Pollen, beeswax, andpropolis are also produced. Beekeepers provide pollination services to horticulturalists, which generates more income than the products of bee culture. Approximately 20–25,000 queen bees, and 20 tonnes of packaged bees (which include worker bees and a queen) are exported live each year
