In May 1997, the Vegetable Industry prepared its first national and coordinated Research and Development plan. One of the fundamental principles adopted by the planning group was the recognition that the industry must maintain a strong customer focus. This project was designed to identify, source and conduct an independent evaluation of any current and recent past consumer market research and determine to what extent the sourced research meets a set of formal “Market Research Objectives” and identify where there are gaps. Finally, it aimed to provide recommendations on a structured Market Research Plan that will address the gaps found and provide the information needed to meet the established Market Research Objectives on an ongoing basis.

This project has been funded by Hort Innovation, using the research and development levies listed below and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

• Vegetable Fund