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Otago was by far the most popular location, accounting for just under half of the land, by area. Many of the purchases have been for vineyards.
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As much as I love wine, I hope that NZ doesn't allow the same sort of environmental degradation that Sonoma and Napa Counties in California have. So many oak forests have been decimated for new vinyards in the last few decades that they have recently had to strictly control such activity. There was an article in the latest Wine Spectator (winespectator.com) on New Zealand wines. It said that Kiwi viniculture is growing by leaps and bounds. Exciting and worrisome at the same time.
Personally, I think it's good that NZ is restricting foreign property ownership. Don't know a lot about the details, but I am cautious about "selling the farm" to folks who may not have the country's best interests in mind.