ozfarming

POSTAGE STAMPS

Since the arrival of the first European settlers, agriculture has been a vital part of Australia's social and economical identity. Today, about one fifth of the Australian work force is employed, either directly or indirectly, in the rural sector. These stamps pay tribute to the Australian rural industry.

In terms of export performance, the five major Australian Rural industries are wool, wheat, beef, dairy and sugar. The combined total export value of these industries to the nation in 1996/7 was close to $14billion.

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.		WOOL
	..	Australian woolgrowers produce around half of the world's apparel wool (435 million kilograms clean in 1996/097) and 35% of the total world supply. In 1996/97 the value of the Australian wool export industry was $3.7 billion. China, Italy, Taiwan and France were the four main importers of our wool during this period. Australia/s sheep flock predominantly consists of Merinos and merino cross breeds and numbers about 123 million head. Wool growing provides direct employment for more than 340,000 Australians while a further 300,000 indirectly rely on the wool industry for a substantial portion of their income.
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		WHEAT
		Wheat production is by far the largest enterprise in the Australian grain industry, with approximately 25,000 farms including wheat as one of their main grains produced. In 1996/97 Australia sold $4.3 billion worth of wheat to overseas buyers.
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		SUGAR
		Australia is among the top raw sugar exporters in the world, despite producing only 4% of the world's sugar. Queensland produces the most, with 6,500 canegrowers accounting for 95% of Australia's total sugar output. Australia's 1996/97 exports totalled $1.5 billion
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		DAIRY
		The dairy industry is Australia's third largest. Around 50,000 people are employed in the dairy industry, another 50,000 people provide related services. There are about 13,700 dairy farms in Australia. In 1996/97 export sales of dairy products reached $1.7 billion.