Pastoral agriculture is practised throughout New Zealand and mainly comprises beef cattle, dairying, and sheep farming. However, deer farming is also an important livestock industry. Deer are farmed for venison and velvet. Stock are grazed in paddocks, often with movable electric fencing, which allows rotation of grazing around the farm. Grass growth is seasonal, largely dependent on location and climatic fluctuations, but normally occurs for between 8 and 12 months of the year.
Many farmers supplement grass feed with hay and silage, particularly in winter.
Nitrogen fertilisers are used to a small degree. Grasslands have been developed to the extent that the best sheep farms can carry up to 25 sheep per hectare throughout the year. The best dairy farms carry 3.5 cows per hectare throughout the year. Trends in livestock numbers are largely determined by world market prices for farm products, including meat, wool, dairy products and, more recently, venison, and goat fibre. Over the last 14 years MAF records that the sheep population has declined from 70.3 million at June 1982 to stand at around 46.2 million at June 1999.