Area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand
New Zealand: Area of permanent meadows and pastures was 9.12 million hectares in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
9.12 million hectares
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
56th
of 209 countries
All-time high
14.73 million hectares
in 1981
All-time low
9.12 million hectares
in 2023
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
The most recent figure for area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand is 9.12 million hectares, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 63 years on record.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 13.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand peaked at 14.73 million hectares in 1981 and was at its lowest, 9.12 million hectares, in 2023.
That places New Zealand 56th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 12.76 million hectares | — |
| 1962 | 12.84 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 1963 | 12.88 million hectares | +0.3% |
| 1964 | 12.91 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 12.85 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1966 | 12.83 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 12.84 million hectares | +0.1% |
| 1968 | 12.84 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 12.69 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1970 | 12.68 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1971 | 12.68 million hectares | -0.0% |
| 1972 | 13.08 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 1973 | 13.08 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 13.08 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 13.53 million hectares | +3.4% |
| 1976 | 13.92 million hectares | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 13.85 million hectares | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 14.06 million hectares | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 13.99 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 14.16 million hectares | +1.2% |
| 1981 | 14.73 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 1982 | 14.15 million hectares | -4.0% |
| 1983 | 14.11 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1984 | 13.98 million hectares | -0.9% |
| 1985 | 13.88 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1986 | 13.88 million hectares | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 13.81 million hectares | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 13.77 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 13.68 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 1990 | 13.49 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 1991 | 13.33 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1992 | 13.17 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 13.01 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1994 | 12.85 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1995 | 12.69 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 12.53 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1997 | 12.37 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 12.21 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 1999 | 12.05 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 11.89 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 11.72 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2002 | 11.56 million hectares | -1.4% |
| 2003 | 11.39 million hectares | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 11.41 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 11.22 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 10.91 million hectares | -2.8% |
| 2007 | 10.99 million hectares | +0.7% |
| 2008 | 10.85 million hectares | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 10.95 million hectares | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 10.84 million hectares | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 10.83 million hectares | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 10.63 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2013 | 10.49 million hectares | -1.3% |
| 2014 | 10.46 million hectares | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 10.17 million hectares | -2.8% |
| 2016 | 10.01 million hectares | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 10.09 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 9.91 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 9.72 million hectares | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 9.55 million hectares | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 9.48 million hectares | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 9.14 million hectares | -3.6% |
| 2023 | 9.12 million hectares | -0.3% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 9.12 million hectares is above the median for high income countries, which is 378,820 hectares, 24.1× the median. (71 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 9.12 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 173,000 hectares, 52.7× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 12.83 million hectares | 12.69 million hectares | 12.91 million hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 13.40 million hectares | 12.68 million hectares | 14.06 million hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 14.01 million hectares | 13.68 million hectares | 14.73 million hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.77 million hectares | 12.05 million hectares | 13.49 million hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.29 million hectares | 10.85 million hectares | 11.89 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.31 million hectares | 9.72 million hectares | 10.84 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 9.32 million hectares | 9.12 million hectares | 9.55 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More reference data data for New Zealand
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4532 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 9.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0459 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 10.93 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.52 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 42.17 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 47.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2499 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand?
- Area of permanent meadows and pastures in New Zealand was 9.12 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest area of permanent meadows and pastures recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 14.73 million hectares in 1981.
- What is the lowest area of permanent meadows and pastures recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.12 million hectares in 2023.
- How does New Zealand rank for area of permanent meadows and pastures?
- New Zealand ranks 56th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is area of permanent meadows and pastures rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Area of permanent meadows and pastures. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
This is the land used for livestock grazing. The total land use for livestock farming is higher as it additionally requires cropland used to grow animal feed.