I’ve got a Canadian friend who’s moving to NZ for about 6 months, and doesn’t seem to realise that even though they’re both southern hemisphere countries I’ve only been to NZ once and am not that informed about it. I’ve been answering most of her questions with google, but there’s a couple I can’t find answers for that I’m hoping the NZ dopers (or those who’ve been there more than I have) can answer!
She’s finding heaps of job opportunities in the cities and seems to be having the most luck in getting asked to come in for interviews when she arrives in Auckland. However her boyfriend is a farmer and wants to work in the country. How far would they have to go from Auckland to find farming/labouring type work?
What’s the best island for farming/labouring type work? I’d imagine livestock/experience with sheep would be a bonus! 
Thanks in advance!
I lived there for three years, but I was in Wellington, so I won’t pretend to be an expert on New Zealand rural life and job opportunities. I’m sure one of the New Zealand dopers will be able to give much better advice. But for what it’s worth:
The Waikato district, centred on Hamilton, about 120km south of Auckland, has a fair degree of rural industry. I’d expect that there would also be rural/labouring jobs in the Northland region. They’re both probably too far from Auckland for daily commuting purposes though.
The South Island is more sparsely populated than the North Island, so there may not be as many job opportunities. Then again, a combined city/rural life may be possible if your friends base themselves in Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island. As I recall, one doesn’t have to travel too far from Christchurch to get into the countryside of the Canterbury Plains. The same could be said of Wellington, the capital city, situated just at the lower tip of the North Island, where the rural areas of the Wairarapa district are not all that far away.
It probably wouldn’t hurt. I think the livestock in the South Island tends more towards sheep, while in the North Island it’s cattle that tend to predominate.
Some agricultural info here.