One in four hectares of Māori land operated by Māori farms in 2020 was forest plantation, Stats NZ said today.
For all New Zealand farms, one in eight hectares was forest plantation in 2020.
A farm for the purposes of agricultural production statistics includes forestry, livestock farming, horticulture, viticulture, nurseries, and grain and seed crops.
The area of forest plantation on Māori farms increased from 66,000 hectares in 2006 to 110,000 hectares in 2016 and continued to increase to 126,000 hectares as at 30 June 2020.
"More land on Māori farms is being used for forest plantation, which may provide an option for the protection of lands, as well as employment and economic benefits," business statistics senior manager Darren Allan said.
In 2020, grassland made up 43 percent of land on Māori farms, compared with 55 percent for all New Zealand farms. In contrast, Māori farms had a higher proportion of bush and scrub, at 20 percent compared with 8 percent on the average New Zealand farm.
| Land use | Māori farms | All New Zealand farms |
| Grassland | 43 | 55 |
| Horticulture land | 1 | 1 |
| Plantation | 26 | 12 |
| Bush and scrub | 20 | 8 |
| All other land | 11 | 23 |
On average, Māori farms are larger and have more stock
Māori farms make up 3.6 percent of all farmland in New Zealand. On average, Māori farms have five times more land than the average New Zealand farm, and have three times as much livestock. In 2020, the average Māori farm was 1,409 hectares, whereas the average New Zealand farm was 271 hectares.
Change in use of Māori land for primary production has more information about land use between 2006 and 2016.
