Some recent changes in rural society in New Zealand

This report reviews recent changes in rural society by describing adjustments on the farm and in the rural community. The financial position of farmers is described and shows that restructuring has had differential impacts on farmers and the farming sector. Farmers with a severe equity crisis have been involved in a slow debt restructuring process for which adjustment assistance has not been generous. The management response is one of reducing expenditure and, for some, undertaking new management strategies and/or diversifying into new land uses. Rural services are no longer supplied as of right and many are organised on a user pays basis. Unemployment has been rising steadily and shows high levels in rural areas. Population change since 1986 is variable with some rural areas having no change in number and some showing a decrease in population. Rural areas do have changes in the composition of the population. Average farm size continues to decline and there now are more small farms of up to 100 hectares. The presence of corporate farms is suggested by anecdotal evidence but does not show up in the official statistics