THE ROLE OF EDUCATORS IN MARKETING THE VALUE OF PLANTS

A change in the premise from growing crops for food or fiber to growing them for human health is having tremendous impact on changing plant biotechnology and medicine and the research, teaching and outreach efforts of land grant universities. In the same way, an understanding of the connection between ornamental plants and mental, social, and environmental health rather than aesthetics is beginning to alter how we look at the value of plants and the uses that we will make of them. This paper looks at how the research related to Human Issues in Horticulture (HIH) can be utilized to influence the horticulture industry within the framework of current marketing concepts in order for the horticulture industry (and the researchers who support that industry) to gain the greatest benefit from this shift. It will compare seller-based market orientation models (Production Concept, Product Concept, Selling Concept) and customer-based market orientation models (Marketing Concept, Market Orientation, Societal Marketing Concept) as they apply to the marketing of horticultural goods and services and how that can be impacted by HIH research.