The structure of the agriculture sector in Australia appears to pose a fundamental constraint to 'product marketing' and 'value-adding' initiatives. A case is presented in this paper for the degree of search activity for differentiation and expansion opportunities to be related to measures of performance. Criteria are presented for the identification of the appropriate market level for an organisation to target within a vertical marketing system and these are then analysed with a view to identifying appropriate grounds for policy intervention by government to modify incentives in such systems. It is argued that grounds can exist for intervention because of increased consumer information even in markets which are contestable and that agribusiness provides many common examples.