Issue No 7, January 1997.

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.

First Australian New Crops Conference

7. Vegetables Workshop

Needs:

gain access to genetic material
evaluate imported genotypes, technologies, skills and resources
improve the image of the industry by such approaches as product specification
coordinate the acquisition of market information and production data
monitor the risks from pests and diseases by management, identification of new pests and registration of chemicals
provide marketing - preliminary scans, market intelligence, economics
research post-harvest handling, packaging and transport for a wide range of products
rationalise the use of chemicals with the clean/green advantage
provide production systems for all crops, ensuring that such investigations should not suffer at the expense of markets
develop methods scaling up to commercial scale and standard

The stakeholders were identified as the idea owner, R&D staff, marketers, producers, processor and those concerned about the national interest and national investors. Those to carry out the work would include the idea owner, other stakeholders and specialists to handle key issues. The process would entail three phases:

Phase 1 of the solution: Analysis.

the idea: it may be driven by needs, production requirements, the market or research priorities
preliminary marketing
can the crop be grown/processed etc.? where and when?
preliminary cost analysis
the collection of information on biological models, world trade data, horticultural expertise available, including the identification of the limitations or deficiencies, the extent and availability of Australian knowledge

Phase 1 would require support from organisations such as RIRDC to encourage completion, with a recommendation being made of appropriate future action.

Phase 2 of the solution: Identification and testing of the key issues.

identify the person/agency responsible for each key issue
determine the appropriate management for any investigation
obtain funding for each key issue
determine the appropriate time frame for investigations
regularly review each key issue, to determine whether to continue or cease the investigation

Phase 3 of the solution: Commercialisation of the market.

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

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originally created by: GK; latest update 6 June 1999 by: RF