The clients for agrometeorological information

This paper deals with the clients that may use agrometeorological informati on. The sections treat the possible identities of the clients, the nature o f the information products that they may request, the products that an agro meteorological unit can provide, the manner of delivery of the product, and the evaluation of the value of the product to the client. A fair amount of agrometeorological knowledge is, or can relatively easily be made availabl e, but far from all is used. If agrometeorological information is communica ted to the right client and applied, agrometeorology can help find 'windows of opportunity' to practise sustainable, high quality agriculture more pro fitably, with less risks, less cost, and less environmental pollution and d amage. Such an application requires a concerted and interdisciplinary appro ach, whether by the public service or by a commercial firm, to offer the ag rometeorological product to the client. The reward may be great, because cl ients may persist for a very long time and useful products may have an inca lculably fruitful outcome. Such is proven by the agrometeorological informa tion for the control of potato blight (Phytophthora infestans), now supplie d to potato farmers all over the world: a single agrometeorological informa tion product, steadily perfected, and persistently used for more than a lif etime of man, having positively affected untold millions of lives. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.