Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Agrarentwicklung und Handel

Writing your B.Sc./M.Sc. thesis at the IATD Group

A list of topics in which we are interested to supervise B.Sc. and M.Sc. theses is found below. Students can also suggest potential own topics and/or research questions. to one of the potential supervisors at the IATD group. Note that there are certain criteria to be fulfilled for your research work to qualify for a B.Sc. or M.Sc. Thesis. The following points are general guidelines:

 

  • Your thesis may include data collection and development, the application of methods such as simulation modeling or econometrics, and/or literature reviews on specific research fields presented in an analytical way.

 

Available thesis topics:

B.Sc.:

  • Der Deutsche Wassersektor: Probleme und Managementstrategien
    Betreuer/Kontaktperson: Jonas Luckmann (luckmann@hu-berlin.de)

 

M.Sc.:

Master's thesis proposal: 

  • Dietary trends in Europe and their alignment with the Planetary Health Diet.
    Understanding how dietary habits are evolving across different social and demographic groups is crucial for assessing the future of food systems and sustainability. This thesis will examine European dietary trends, focusing on generational and socio-economic differences in food consumption patterns. Key aspects will include what people eat (e.g., meat, sugar, plant-based foods), how they eat (e.g., home-cooked meals vs. snacks, institutional vs. private settings), and how much they consume in terms of calories and macronutrients. The first part of the thesis will consist of a literature review, identifying well-established dietary trends with strong scientific evidence and assessing how widespread these trends are in different European countries. The second part will develop scenarios based on these findings and compare them with the Planetary Health Diet proposed by the EAT-Lancet Commission. This comparison will help determine whether demographic and economic changes are naturally aligned with sustainable and healthy diets or pushing societies further away from these goals. To add depth, the thesis could explore policy interventions that influence these dietary trends, such as taxation, subsidies, or public nutrition programs. Alternatively, the identified scenarios could be implemented in the CAPRI model to analyze their implications for European agriculture. This research will provide insights into how dietary shifts affect public health and agricultural policies, providing valuable information for policymakers aiming to steer food consumption toward more sustainable patterns.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • Policy Solutions for Tackling Nutrient Pollution Hotspots in EU Agriculture: Balancing Environmental and Economic Goals with the CAPRI Model
    Nutrient pollution from agriculture remains a major environmental challenge in the EU, driving eutrophication, biodiversity loss, and water quality degradation, with concentrated "hotspots" worsening regional disparities. The European Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food highlights the need to enhance farm-level nutrient efficiency and promote circular practices, calling for targeted action in high-risk areas through collaborative strategies. This thesis evaluates how various policy instruments—such as nitrogen surplus taxes, fertilizer input taxes, subsidies for precision farming technologies and other policy options—could mitigate nutrient pollution without compromising farm livelihoods. Using the CAPRI model, the study assesses the environmental and economic impacts of these policies across EU nutrient pollution hotspots. The objective is to identify effective policy solutions that reduce pollution while ensuring agricultural viability, particularly in regions facing severe nutrient imbalances. The findings will provide evidence-based insights to inform the ongoing debate on future CAP reforms.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • Mirror clauses for food and agricultural products, positions, possible developments, and impacts?
    Description: This master's thesis investigates the concept of mirror clauses in international trade agreements, specifically focusing on food and agricultural products. Mirror clauses refer to provisions that replicate or mirror existing regulations, standards, or policies in one country to another. The research will examine the current positions of key stakeholders (e.g., governments, industries, NGOs) on mirror clauses, possible developments in their application, and potential impacts on global trade, food security, and sustainability. The thesis aims to provide insights into the benefits and drawbacks of mirror clauses, their implications for international trade relations, and recommendations for future policy-making. Based on the findings, quantitative assessments might be investigated using economic models like CAPRI.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • Precision fermentation of milk products and the possible impact on the agricultural sector
    Precision fermentation of milk proteins is an emerging biotechnology that enables the production of dairy-identical proteins using microorganisms instead of cows. This innovation has the potential to substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions, land and water use compared to conventional dairy farming. A large-scale adoption of precision-fermented dairy products could profoundly reshape the agricultural sector, affecting dairy farmers, feed crop producers, and processing industries. It also raises important questions about consumer acceptance, market integration, and the broader sustainability implications of such technological shifts. This master’s thesis aims to assess the potential environmental, economic, and social impacts of precision-fermented dairy and to explore how this innovation could be represented within the agricultural sector model CAPRI (Common Agricultural Policy Regionalised Impact Modelling System). The work will combine a literature-based gap analysis with the development of theoretical and modelling frameworks. In the first part, a structured review of the scientific and grey literature will identify current knowledge on environmental performance, production costs, and market prospects of precision-fermented dairy products, while highlighting key research gaps. Building on these insights, a conceptual and quantitative framework will be developed to integrate precision fermentation into the CAPRI model, with a focus on the processing sector. This will include defining input–output relationships, substitution mechanisms between conventional and precision-fermented dairy products, and assumptions for production costs and adoption rates. Scenario analyses conducted with CAPRI will then assess potential impacts on agricultural production, trade, land use, and greenhouse gas emissions under different adoption scenarios. The findings will provide one of the first integrated assessments of precision fermentation within an agricultural–economic modelling context and contribute to a better understanding of how emerging biotechnologies can support the transition toward more sustainable food systems.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • What are the most promising strategies for methane reduction in livestock production in the EU?
    Methane emissions from ruminant livestock are a major contributor to the European Union’s agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint, arising primarily from enteric fermentation and manure management. Reducing these emissions is essential for achieving the EU’s climate objectives outlined in the Green Deal and the Farm to Fork Strategy. In recent years, numerous mitigation measures have been proposed, such as feed additives, improved manure management, genetic selection for low-emission animals, and innovative housing systems. Yet, their effectiveness, costs, and large-scale applicability remain uncertain. This master’s thesis aims to assess the potential and implications of different methane mitigation strategies in the European livestock sector. The work will combine a literature-based review and gap analysis with model-based scenario evaluation using the Common Agricultural Policy Regionalised Impact (CAPRI) model. In the first phase, a structured literature review will compile and evaluate recent scientific findings on the technical performance, environmental effectiveness, and economic feasibility of key methane reduction options. Based on these insights, the study will verify and update existing assumptions on methane-related technologies in CAPRI, ensuring alignment with the most recent evidence. If important measures are not yet represented in the model, additional technologies will be conceptualized and integrated into the modelling framework. Subsequently, scenario and sensitivity analyses will be conducted to assess the potential mitigation impact, costs, and trade-offs of these strategies at the European scale. The results will provide a comprehensive overview of how technological innovation and management changes could help reduce methane emissions from livestock.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • An Analysis of Public and Private Funding for Agricultural Carbon Measures

    The core of the thesis topic proposal involves getting an understanding and conducting an economic assessment of a public-private funding mix of carbon measures. The introduction will provide an overview of key current developments related to the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), the CAP Strategic Plans, and the science and policies of carbon sequestration in agriculture. This thesis examines how finance is allocated for climate action in the land sector, focusing on how public CAP funds may interact with private revenue generated through CRCF certification. To this end, the thesis will identify key legislation and actions relevant to agricultural climate finance and carbon farming. A part of the analysis involves the critical examination of the conditions under which certificates are to be issued under the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), with particular focus on issues such as additionality, permanence, and avoidance of double-counting with existing public funding and current legal requirements under the CAP or other regulations, e.g., water and nitrate directives. In this context, the candidate could analyze the extent to which legal requirements, such as those related to soil protection, fertilization, and crop rotation, require agricultural practices that overlap with carbon farming measures, particularly the use of cover crops. This includes assessing whether such practices can be considered additional under the EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) or whether their mandatory nature excludes them from certification.

    Furthermore, the candidate should explore how existing regulatory frameworks would need to be modified to allow for the accreditation and financing of these measures under the CRCF. Another subtopic of this thesis could be to estimate potential private revenue from CRCF-certified Carbon Removal Units and assess how this revenue could supplement or replace public CAP support to promote sustainable carbon farming. This includes mapping carbon-focused measures within selected Member States' CAP Strategic Plans. Specifically, it involves identifying interventions such as Eco-schemes for conservation tillage, AECMs supporting agroforestry, or peatland rewetting, and calculating the public funds spent on these interventions in Euros. To determine the funding mix, the approach involves quantifying farm-level costs and public funding for targeted measures. For each practice that reduces carbon, the total abatement cost is calculated using data from the project HumusKlimaNetz (www.humusKlimaNetz.de), among other sources. Depending on the focus of the master's thesis, the scope can be quantified or simplified to measures such as catch crops, moor rewetting, or no-till/reduced tillage. By subtracting the public subsidy from the total cost, the funding gap to be addressed through market-based finance becomes clear. Additionally, the findings are summarized, including a critical assessment of the approach and a sensitivity analysis to identify actions and key questions for further research.

    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • How negotiations between farmers, processors, and retailers shape prices in European Agri-Food Chains
    Achievements and tasks of the work: Negotiations between farmers, processors, retailers, and consumers play a central role in determining who earns what along the agri-food value chain. These negotiations shape how strongly price changes are transmitted through the chain, influencing both agricultural production and food consumption. This master’s thesis will explore how different real-world situations—such as shifts in bargaining power, input cost shocks, or policy changes—affect price transmission and value distribution in European agri-food markets. The student will first identify and describe such situations using literature, market reports, or policy examples, and then translate them into quantitative scenarios for analysis using the CAPRI (Common Agricultural Policy Regionalised Impact) model. The CAPRI model is a Europe-wide economic simulation tool that helps researchers explore how agricultural markets and policies interact — for example, how changes in prices or policies affect production, trade, and consumption. By running and comparing these CAPRI simulations, the thesis will assess how alternative negotiation settings influence market outcomes, farm income, and consumer prices. The work offers the opportunity to apply an established economic model to highly topical questions about fairness and efficiency in the food system.
    Supervisor/Contact person: Alexander Gocht (alexander.gocht@hu-berlin.de)
  • „New: Master theses in the field of economics and governance of agricultural and food systems at the IATD group at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin in exchange with Agora Agriculture” (pdf)
  • Developing an Input-Output Table for Israel or Jordan to be submitted to the Global Trade Analysis Project (https://www.gtap.agecon.purdue.edu/databases/contribute/default.asp)
    Supervisor/Contact person: Jonas Luckmann (luckmann@hu-berlin.de)
  • Analysing and evaluating the 2019 Social Accounting Matrix for Ghana: Towards Effective Utilisation in Addressing Public Health Challenges and Policies
    Contact person: Zuhal Elnour (zuhal.elnour@hu-berlin.de)
    Supervisors: Zuhal Elnour (zuhal.elnour@hu-berlin.de) and Harald Grethe (grethe@hu-berlin.de)
    Further information (pdf)
  • Development of a 2019 Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Burkina Faso with Malaria Epidemiological Zones
    Contact person: Martial Houessou (martial.houessou@hu-berlin.de)
    Supervisors: Zuhal Elnour (zuhal.elnour@hu-berlin.de) and Harald Grethe (grethe@hu-berlin.de)
    Further information (pdf)

  • Depicting impacts of flooding and mitigation measures in economy-wide simulation-models
    Supervisor/Contact person: Jonas Luckmann (luckmann@hu-berlin.de)

 

Country-level analysis of economic and/or agricultural policies using SAM-based simulation models

This MSc topic is only suitable for students who attended our course on “Introduction to simulation models in market and policy analysis” or an equivalent course. It would also be good if the student attends our one-week blocked PhD module on “Applied general equilibrium modeling” or the MSc module on “Intermediate CGE modeling”.

Under this topic, the MSc thesis includes the following activities:

  • Develop research questions of the thesis focused on one particular country of interest. They should be suitable for being answered using a SAM-based simulation model,
  • Develop/update a SAM (social accounting matrix) for the country of interest, and
  • Implement policy simulations to answer the research questions using either a CGE or SAM-multiplier model.
  • Supervisor: Khalid Siddig (khalid.siddig@hu-berlin.de)

 

B.Sc. and M.Sc.:

Support and supervision of bachelor and master theses at the interface of Agora Agriculture and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, new topics announced: PDF.