New Zealand’s ratio of sheep to humans at lowest point in 170 years

Farmers turning to forestry and the fall in the price of wool are being blamed for the ratio of sheep to people falling below five to one

New Zealand’s ratio of sheep to people has dropped below five to one for the first time since national population records began in the late 1850s.

The vast ovine herds that outnumber human New Zealanders are a long-running joke outside the country; one of a few nuggets of information about New Zealand – alongside its links to The Lord of the Rings and Jacinda Ardern – that is know by the rest of the world.