New Zealand Agriculture and Forestry: The Future
Research and Innovation
New Zealand has has always encouraged research and development in the primary industries. Initially, the main goal was to increase farm output . Research and extension have been important in helping the agriculture, horticulture and forestry industries develop over the last 100 years.
Research and development will continue to be crucial to the performance of these industries, but its focus has shifted over recent years from production towards adding value and developing new products to meet the increasingly sophisticated demand from customers and the international marketplace. The public contribution to research and development is about 0.6 percent of GDP.
Animal Welfare
New Zealand has a strong animal welfare focus. The extensive pastoral farming systems used by New Zealand farmers have advantages for animal welfare. Because there is no need to house farm animals for long periods, their freedom of movement is rarely restricted, and they live a more "natural" life than livestock in countries with less favourable climates. Low density stocking results in lower disease pressure, requiring fewer animal remedy applications.
Market access and trade negotiations
New Zealand's primary industries are very dependent on access to world markets and international prices for their profitability. Consequently New Zealand is deeply committed to participating in negotiations to lower trade barriers.
A freer trading environment for primary producers would have many benefits for the New Zealand economy. Better trading conditions mean better prices and opportunities for farmers, growers, processors and exporters, and that means more jobs. As a small, trading nation, New Zealand has been well served by the WTO's dispute settling powers.
Environment
Consumer demand for food and fibre produced by environmentally friendly systems will continue to grow. New Zealand farmers and growers are constantly adjusting their production systems and practices to protect environmental values in the productive landscape. Forest lots are becoming an accepted part of the pastoral scene, values through farm and forest design. Techniques for efficient water, fertiliser and energy use are continually being evolved and refined.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has completed a national landcover database that utilises GIS (Geographic Information Systems) technology and allows identification of land use down to the hectare level. This will be a valuable tool for monitoring the state of the environment. This function has now been transferred to the Ministry of the Environment. The National Landcover database will be updated at five year intervals.
Climate Change
New Zealand is among the 182 countries that have ratified the Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) and has also signed the Kyoto Protocol, responding to concerns over potential global warming. Current commitments under the Kyoto Protocol are aimed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels over the commitment period 2008 to 2012 or to take responsibility for excess emissions.
New Zealand has a unique GHG emissions profile amongst developed countries: greenhouse gases from farm sources accounted for as much as 51 percent of New Zealand's gross GHG emissions in 2001. Methane comes mainly from livestock digestion processes, while the main sources of nitrous oxide, another greenhouse gas, are nitrogen fertiliser, animal urine and natural soil processes.
On-farm greenhouse gas emissions increased by 8 percent for methane and 22 percent for nitrous oxide between 1990 and 2001 as a result of increasing animal performance and nitrogen fertiliser use. The Government's policy is to require the agricultural sector to fund an appropriate amount of research into mitigation of methane and nitrous oxide emissions. Researchers are investigating methane formation during animal digestion, and methods of reducing emissions.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity (or biological diversity) refers to the variety of all life forms. New Zealand is a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The Convention was opened for signature at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 and came into force in December 1993. The principal objectives of the CBD are the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from its utilisation. It recognises three main levels of diversity: diversity of genes, diversity of species and diversity of ecosystems.
New Zealand's national biodiversity programme is largely concerned with addressing the loss of indigenous species biodiversity through the National Biodiversity Strategy Action Plan and National Policy Statement on Biodiversity. However, also important to New Zealand is understanding and recognising the role for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in productive landscapes under agriculture and forestry. New Zealand actively supports and carries out research into both indigenous and agriculturally important species. Research into the off-site impacts of agriculture is aimed at devising farming systems with less impact on surrounding ecology and species. The Ministry for the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry are implementing a sustainable land management strategy to help farmers, growers, foresters and local government to manage land better for the benefit of soil, water and biodiversity. Other important components of the biodiversity strategy include border control to keep out unwanted pests and diseases, and the development of strategies to protect habitats on private land.
Contact for Enquiries
MAF Information Services
Pastoral House
25 The Terrace
PO Box 2526
Wellington, NEW ZEALAND
Fax: +64 4 894 0721
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