Rawhitiroa: a study of a New Zealand dairy farming district

Abstract

New Zealand is predominantly a farming country. Her wealth is derived from her fields rather than her factories. She has no sprawling industrial metropolises like the great cities of Western Europe and Forth America. The town is closely related to the farm not only in the spatial sense but also in the cultural sense; for the townsman never lives far from the open country, he is likely to make regular contacts with farmer friends and relatives,and in his work he may be processing farm produce or providing a service needed by the rural community. Over 95% of the Dominion's exports come from the sale of farm products, and farming contributes about 60% of the total value of production. Although economic dependence on farming industries is high and the country has no heavily industrialized urban areas, only about 18% of the total working population are producers on the land. Farming in New Zealand is very efficient from the point of view of manpower. Farm output per capita, among the highest in the world, reflects not only favourable environmental conditions, but is especially the result of an intensive application of science and machinery to farm management. This has meant that New Zealand farmers, enjoying a high standard of living, can compete with producers who are located more closely to the world 's buying areas.