Press Release
Agriculture Department Opens Five Rural Offices and Publishes Land and Holdings Figures
Office of the Spokesperson
The Agriculture Department of the Velocity Interoperability Network today confirmed the opening of rural offices in each of the five agricultural districts of the Network: the Northern Vale, the Eastfield Plain, the Westbrook Downs, the Southern Levels and the Meridian Uplands. The offices open between Monday 7 September and Friday 11 September 2026 and provide holding registration, the farm advisory service, training courses and the weekly market bulletin. Opening days and hours are set out on the Rural Services page of this site.
The Department also published its first statistical release on land and holdings. At establishment 4,218 agricultural holdings were entered on the register, covering 312,600 hectares. Of that area 141,200 hectares are arable, 118,900 hectares permanent grassland, 9,400 hectares horticulture and 24,700 hectares woodland on holdings. The register records 186,400 cattle, 402,700 sheep, 61,300 pigs and 2.9 million poultry, and 11,870 people regularly employed on holdings.
The figures are drawn from the returns transferred by member organisations during the transition period and are provisional. The Department will publish statistics quarterly; the next release, covering the quarter ending 30 September 2026, will be published in October. The full release is set out on the Land and Holdings page of this site.