Close

Agribusiness

Opportunities
Orchid scale

The Territory’s agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector produces clean, safe and natural products in pristine environments and continues to grow through expansion and diversification.

Key insights of agribusiness opportunities

596,312km2

pastoral leases in the Territory

2,500km2

average pastoral lease in the Territory

8,000

average head of cattle in an average pastoral lease

444,750

head of live cattle left the Territory in 2021-2022

200 nautical miles

the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone from the Territory coastline

5,500 tonnes

fish and marine life exported in 2021/2022

11,000km

of coastline which supports a diverse array of fisheries and aquaculture opportunities

55.65%

of Australia’s mangoes supplied from the Territory

4.4 million

mango trays 2021-2022

Northern Territory map highlighting the Top End, Big Rivers and Barkley, and Central Australia regions

Top End Region including Darwin, Palmerston and Litchfield: higher rainfall suitable for tropical crops.

Big Rivers and Barkly regions: semi-arid and suitable for a range of irrigated and rain-fed crops.

Central Australia: low humidity and low temperatures suitable for vegetable, fruit, crops and fodder.

Cattle yard

Beef cattle production

Cattle operations in the Territory are generally large scale and sophisticated, with herd sizes averaging more than 8,000 head grazing mainly large tracts of native rangeland pastures. Total cattle numbers tend to range between 1.8 and 2.4 million head, depending on environmental conditions, with turnoff exceeding 600,000 head annually.

The Territory seeks to lift productivity of Northern Territory cattle herds.

Water tank

Pristine marine environments

The Territory is acknowledged globally as having one of the most pristine marine environments in the world.
The Australian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extends for up to 200 nautical miles from the Territory coastline.

  • 5,500 tonnes of fish and marine life exported in 2021/2022
  • 10,953km of coastline which supports a diverse array of fisheries and aquaculture opportunities.
Orchid

Largest producer of mangoes in Australia

  • 55.65% of Australia’s mangoes supplied from the Territory
  • Over 4.4 million trays to markets in the 2021-2022 season.

The Territory is a substantial producer and supplier of high-quality, melons and Asian vegetables to domestic and international markets. Increasing demand from Asian markets for tropical fruits has provided opportunities for investors to further develop the horticultural industry.

Find out more

Northern Territory agribusiness 2030 strategy

The strategy highlights the Territory Governments commitment to growing the livestock, horticulture, broad acre cropping, fisheries and aquaculture sectors.

Open data portals

Access a broad range of government data, including geoscientific information, land systems and soil assessments.

Development opportunities

For high priority horticultural development areas, land and water study information.