As we enter the 21^st century, the need to become more effective in bringing home the harvest of the Green Revolution has become increasingly apparent. The Strategic Plan of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) for 1997-2001 contains the following statement:
“Recognising the urgent need to reduce losses and maintain acceptable quality of harvested agricultural products, ACIAR will increase its investment in research on postharvest technology relevant to crops, livestock, aquatic resources and forest products. Resources will be diverted from research on production aspects of these commodities if necessary." (ACIAR, 1997a)
In seeking to implement this part of the Strategic Plan, ACIAR has devoted considerable effort to defining the rationale for this investment and developing a framework for collaborative research and development in postharvest technology with partner countries. This paper outlines the rationale and framework for the plan, and indicates the opportunities for interface between our developing country partners and other agencies involved in international agricultural research for development. Collaboration and cooperation can maximize effective use of those agri-research resources that postharvest scientists and marketing specialists glean from the production specialists!