Pesticide residues or inadequate hygiene –in developing countries especially, vegetable consumption all too often turns out to be a health risk. And yet according to a study conducted by the World Vegetable Center (AVRDC) based in Taiwan, Vietnamese consumers, for instance, would be willing to pay 60 percent more for safe vegetables free of residues. The study was financed via BMZ’s “Small grants for international research” programme. This has been funding innovative projects of international agricultural research centres and German institutions of higher education for over ten years and has so far supported a total of 52 projects. Most of these are geared to developing sustainable production systems and to maintaining and using natural resources and biodiversity. The small grants fund is popular among research facilities, as the applications received every year show.