Australia is a significant player in world trade for several commodities and agriculture is a vital part of the Australian economy. Around 60% of Australia is devoted to agriculture, with three broad zones in which agricultural activity occurs. These are referred to as the pastoral, wheat–sheep, and high rainfall zones. Australia had only about 130,000 commercial farms in 2005, so average farm size is high. Australia's agriculture is market driven and export-oriented. For some products, aggregations for values of production and for export values are not directly comparable because export values reflect the value of more highly processed products such as sugar and wine. Overall, about 65% of agricultural production is exported, representing about 25% of... |