Specialized papers

In this thesis Lisa Hillenbrand wants to investigate the extent to which digital innovations in agriculture support the implementation of agroecology within the European Food System. Agroecology is understood as a holistic ap-proach that extends beyond ecological farming practices to encompass cultural, social, economic, and political dimensions. It is increasingly recognized as a viable framework for transforming current agri-food systems into sustainable and resilient ones. While agricultural digitalization has primarily focused on optimizing processes, often resulting in only a narrow alignment with agroecological principles, novel tools leveraging innovative tech-nologies are now emerging. This work aims to provide a detailed analysis of the features of these digital tools, examining their contribution to agroecology and therefore, their potential to support sustainable food system transformation.

(In cooperation with the Department of Biobased Resources in the Bioeconomy, Dr. Moritz von Cossel.)

The thesis of Federico Erpenbach is about sustainable innovations and challenges in the specialty mushroom cultivation sector in Germany and neighbouring countries (Switzerland and Austria). Through a systematic literature review and interview with producers it confronts innovations and challenges related to the sustainability and circularity of the sector.

(In cooperation with the Department of Sustainable Use of Natural Resources, Prof. Dr. Verena Seufert.)

In his master thesis Uttej Chadaravalli talks about investigating the "challenges to implement bio based plastics in sustainable food packaging start-ups a cradle-to-cradle  perspective". It will look closely at start-ups in Germany that are creating alternative packaging material for plastic using biomass. The thesis will focus on several aspects of start-ups in different stages to uncover the real challenges to create a 100% sustainable packaging for food. Start-ups from other countries and from Germany will be compared.

(In cooperation with the Entrepreneurship Research Group, Prof. Dr. Andreas Kuckertz & InnoGreenhouse.)

Mei Ting Wong investigates residual streams from food processing (with Philipp Scheurich & Prof. Dr. Iris Lewandowski.)