The Minister of Agriculture is a ministerial portfolio in the government of New Zealand. It existed from 1889 until 2012, when the Ministry was merged into the larger Ministry of Primary Industries, and again from 2017 onwards as part of the Labour coalition government. George Richardson was the first holder of the office, and David Carter of the New Zealand National Party was the last before the merge. In the end, there was no Associate Minister of Agriculture, although the position had existed in the past. Carter became the first Minister of Primary Industries. During the Sixth Labour Government, the Primary Industries portfolio was again split into four – Agriculture, Fisheries, Biosecurity and Forestry. The current Minister of Agriculture is Damien O'Connor. (en)