Abstract
Agriculture has gone through a most remarkable transition in the latter half of the 20th century. It has evolved highly efficient systems of livestock production based on forage conservation in Europe and rice growing in East Asia. It is envisaged that by the end of this century few significant areas will remain where production can be expanded onto virgin land. Expansion of agricultural output will have to be obtained almost entirely through intensification of husbandry resulting in a continuous demand for advances in agricultural technology. Over the next decades it is imperative that there is adequate agricultural research capacity in the various agro-climatic regions of the world for each important commodity.