NEW ZEALAND - EXPLORE NZ FOOD AND BEVERAGE IN AUSTRALIA

Great wine stories start with the land. New Zealand offers young soils, dramatic landscapes − from the subtropical north to the mountainous south − and a maritime climate with long sunshine hours and nightly sea breezes. The proximity of New Zealand vineyards to the ocean has a pronounced effect on the character of our wines. Combined, these elements produce a diverse array of distinctive, high-quality wines that develop pure, intense varietal flavours.

New Zealand winegrowers tread lightly on the land, letting what's good remain at its very best. Ninety-six percent of our vineyard area is certified sustainable by Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand, and a growing number of vineyards have achieved organic or carbon neutral status, too. Continued innovation and a commitment to research and development is evident from the vineyard to the winery. Along with sustainability leadership, New Zealand continues to pioneer advances, such as canopy management, stainless steel fermentation techniques, natural alcohol-lowering technology and the use of screwcaps. Our wine is world class and we consistently place highly at international wine awards.

At the world's most rigorous wine competition, the 2020 International Wine Challenge, New Zealand ranked third best in the world for its wine, scooping up 14 gold medals and 287 medals overall in the first round. Sauvignon blanc was the first wine to put New Zealand on the map, and it has developed a cult following with millions around the globe. The world's love for New Zealand wine continues to grow as wine lovers discover the diverse range of varieties on offer, including our expressive pinot noir, refined chardonnay, and refreshing pinot gris and rosé.

New Zealand's long coastline and cool, clear, nutrient-rich oceanic waters produce outstanding seafood of phenomenal flavour and trusted quality. The sustainable management of our precious resource lies at the heart of our industry with the Māori concept of kaitiakitanga − or guardianship − guiding the way we work with the sea and ensuring its bounty is preserved for generations to come.

New Zealand is globally recognised for its pioneering fisheries management system, which covers almost 100 commercial species and ensures 94 percent of New Zealand's commercial catch comes from sustainable stocks. From line-caught fresh fish through to innovative aquaculture and world-first Precision Seafood Harvesting technology, our industry is always striving to minimise its impacts on the marine environment and improve its practices.

New Zealand produces an abundance of rock lobster, mussels, hoki, squid, salmon, paua and tuna, and exports to more than 100 countries around the world. We are world leaders in high-quality niche species such as King salmon and our unique Greenshell mussels, and you can trace any aquaculture product originating from New Zealand back to the farm it grew in, the date it was harvested, and when and where it was processed. All aquaculture in New Zealand is rated best choice by the Monterey Bay Aquarium's respected sustainability programme 'Seafood Watch'. With a freshness you can taste, our seafood is in a class of its own.

Wide open spaces, a natural environment and year-round outdoor grazing methods make for healthy grass-fed animals. They give our meat a distinct and tender flavour, too. Alongside our world-class beef and lamb products, New Zealand is the leading worldwide source for farm-raised venison, and we also supply top-quality veal, goat meat and poultry.

Almost a quarter of New Zealand's beef and lamb exports are Halal-certified, and our leading meat exporters work closely with their international partners to create products perfectly suited to local tastes and cuisines.

Since the 1990s, the sheep and beef sector has made major productivity and eco-efficiency gains, and is now producing more from less. And it continues to actively work towards a sustainable future, which includes ensuring every sheep and beef farm has a tailored environment plan by the end of 2021, with the sector as a whole moving towards carbon neutrality by 2050.

Our animal welfare standards rank among the world's best, and strict biosecurity and quality control processes, together with our geographic isolation, result in an animal disease-free status recognised by the World Organisation for Animal Health.

We use advanced technology and stringent hygiene processes to guarantee the highest levels of quality and food safety. Our national electronic certification system tracks meat products from the factory all the way to the importing country, so you can be sure of receiving New Zealand meat at its prime and ready to be enjoyed.

From beer and cider to spirits, natural juices, soft drinks and sparkling water, New Zealand beverages have firmly secured their reputation around the world as top-quality products. Like all our New Zealand products, our beverage difference starts with naturally pure ingredients, and it doesn't get any purer than artesian water bottled at the source. We deliver refreshing spring water to international customers with only the lightest of touches − including the world's first carbon-neutral certified premium water brand.

Ever the innovators, our producers draw upon a combination of neuroscience and nature to create a range of functional beverages, including plant-based nootropic drinks designed to boost brain function and the immune system, with ingredients such as New Zealand pine bark, blackcurrants and chia seeds. Then there's our craft beer industry − we now have around 260 breweries and 1600 beers on offer. These full-flavoured, artisan brews, powered by unique local hop varieties and brewing expertise and experience, are finding their way to lovers of fine beer around the world.

Our premium spirits scene is thriving. At the prestigious International Wine and Spirits Competition, a New Zealand gin beat more than 600 other gins to be given the highest possible accolade in the global industry. Our tonics win awards, too, and are served in some of the top gin bars around the globe. And with internationally awarded New Zealand rums and vodkas, our spirits are easily counted among the best in the world.

New Zealand's temperate climate, fertile soil, clean air and abundant water enables us to grow a wide variety of fresh-tasting, quality fruit and vegetables that are high in nutritional value. New Zealand growers produce more than 100 varieties of fruits and vegetables, including kiwifruit, apples, cherries, berries, stone fruit, avocados, onions, butternut squash, garlic, tomatoes, asparagus, carrots and much more, exporting to more than 120 international markets.

Hardwired to innovate and never satisfied with the status quo, New Zealand has introduced a number of new and delicious fruit varieties to the world, including a distinctive red-fleshed kiwifruit, and the first highly nutritious, snack-sized apple, which also contains 65 percent more potassium, 19 percent more energy and 10 percent more fibre than the average apple.

Thanks to some of the world's most stringent biosecurity regulations, New Zealand orchards and farms are free of major pests and diseases, making us a world leader in low residue production. Our Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) quality assurance programmes provide traceable systems all the way from crop to customer, ensuring confidence in the integrity and provenance of our products.

New Zealand is renowned for its delicious, high-quality honey, gathered from our beehives up and down the land, from mountain highlands to low-lying pastures. Consequently, we produce a diverse and varied range, from pale, mild creamed honeys through to the full-flavoured mānuka and bush honeys. We also produce honeys that cannot be found anywhere else in the world, like kāmahi, kānuka, pōhutukawa, rātā, rewarewa and tāwari.

New Zealand mānuka honey is produced by bees that collect nectar from the mānuka flower. The most well-known of our honeys, mānuka has been the focus of extensive scientific research evidencing remarkable natural properties, making it highly prized by consumers around the globe. The mānuka plant has been used by Māori as natural medicine for generations, to treat wounds and burns, soothe digestion and help reduce inflammation.

New Zealand honey is used as an ingredient in sports drinks, marinades and sauces, as well as in a range of health, cosmetic and wellbeing products including supplements, body washes, soaps, candles and deodorants.

New Zealand's milk products come from a good place. Our rich soils, climate and abundant water create the perfect environment for pasture-fed dairy cows, with space to roam. It's our quality and care at every step that sets our dairy apart. We are passionate about sharing our full-flavoured and nutritious dairy products with the world. We produce everything from butter, cheese and ice cream through to infant formula. And we're also proud to offer our premium sheep and goat milk products − with all the goodness and trusted quality of our traditional dairy industry.

While simple, natural goodness is at the heart of everything we produce, we continue to pursue innovation and explore new ways of doing things. Innovative products such as instant mozzarella and chef-ready creams make life easier for our food service customers, while new probiotic and specifically designed nutritional products support the health and wellbeing of consumers at all stages of life.

We pride ourselves on our rigorous hygiene, food safety and quality standards, and we are home to the first dairy company in the world to be able to electronically trace products anywhere on the planet within minutes.

New Zealand dairy farmers are deeply committed to caring for people, animals and land. Our pasture-based farming, with high biosecurity standards, means a lower carbon footprint for our milk, and it helps our animals to stay healthy. Our culture is one of always striving to do even better. Working to protect and preserve our natural environment is important to us. Fencing waterways, undertaking riparian planting, and actively working to improve efficiency of water and nutrient use are just some of the things we do to help care for the environment.