NOTICE: Hard copies of the Australian New Crops Newsletter are available from the publisher, Dr Rob Fletcher. Details of availability are included in the
Advice on Publications Available.Ian Wood and Rob Fletcher
The response to our first New Crops Newsletter, published in January, has been most encouraging with a number of correspondents, both from within Australia and from overseas, strongly endorsing our view that there was a need for such a Newsletter.
The extent of the interest is indicated by the fact that since the initial distribution of about 500 we have received a further 200 requests from individuals and organisations for inclusion on the distribution list. We welcome further requests.
In this issue, we have widened the scope of the Newsletter by including two invited articles. These both come from Tasmania, which over the past two decades has developed an impressive record in establishing new primary industries.
Ralph Stuart of the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries Tasmania (DPIFT) describes the innovative approach that has been adopted by the Department to foster new industries.
Steve Martin, also from the DPIFT, discusses the question of Commercial-in-Confidence, so often an impediment to new crop R and D.
In a contributed article, Greg Ferguson, from the University of Queensland Gatton College (UQG), with tongue in cheek, contrasts the difficulties in selecting new crops with the difficulties in selecting a football team.
Also included in this issue are short articles on five interesting new crops. Two of these, chickpea and pyrethrum, are now outstanding commercial successes and provide an interesting insight into the factors that affect successful new crop development.
The article on nashi fruit on the NSW north coast provides some important lessons on the difficulties that arise when efforts are made to establish a new export industry in an unsuitable area.
The fourth crop, sandalwood, is not yet commercial but the potential is certainly exciting. The comment on the American experience with Jerusalem artichoke also provides an important lesson: in this case, a lesson on the problems of marketing a product without a market.
The history of new crops in Australia provides many examples of individuals whose initiative and hard work have led to the development of new agricultural industries. In this and future issues of the newsletter we plan to profile some of the individuals who have made such contributions. We start in this issue with a profile of Dr John Gladstones, the father of the Australian lupin industry. Lupins are now an important component of the farming systems of southern Australia, particularly in the state of Western Australia.
We welcome any suggestions to improve the newsletter and would be pleased to receive contributions, including Letters to the Editors.
Any claims made by authors in the Australian New Crops Newsletter are presented by the Editors in good faith. Readers would be wise to critically examine the circumstances associated with any claims to determine the applicability of such claims to their specific set of circumstances. This material can be reproduced, with the provision that the source and the author (or editors, if applicable) are acknowledged and the use is for information or educational purposes. Contact with the original author is probably wise since the material may require updating or amendment if used in other publications. Material sourced from the Australian New Crops Newsletter cannot be used out of context or for commercial purposes not related to its original purpose in the newsletter
Contact: Dr Rob Fletcher, School of Land and Food, The University of Queensland Gatton College, 4345; Telephone: 07 5460 1311 or 07 5460 1301; Facsimile: 07 5460 1112; International facsimile: 61 7 5460 1112; Email:
r.fletcher@mailbox.uq.edu.au[
New Crops Home Page] [New Crops Program] [Australian New Crops Newsletter] [New Crops Publications] [Order Form] [People] [Crop Profiles] [Other Resources]originally created by:
GK; latest update 6 June 1999 by: RF