The main idea underpinning this conference and this inventory is to identify plant products that, with well-managed development, are capable of providing a reasonable return to farmers and for which there is a real market demand, eitheir from consumers of fresh produce or from industrial food-processors. Our presentation, therefore, sets ont to highlight some key factors that we consider essential for the setting up or development of a new food-processing or agro-industrial sector. We will start with a simplified outline of a food-processing or agro-industrial sector, identifying the different actors, analysing their necessary interdependence, but also their often conflicting motives and interests. Then, to ensure that the discussion is not merely theoretical, we will present the experience of recently established foodprocessing or agro-industrial sectors, that do not always relate to plants of Mediterranean origin but that have had differing degrees of success. From these successes and failures, we will try to draw some conclusions for future NUC developers that will be discussed during this conference.