 Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-USYSOpen OpportunitiesBasierend auf Ihren Kenntnissen aus der Vorlesung «Optimierung landwirtschaftlicher Produktionssysteme» erstellen Sie ein Optimierungsmodell in Excel oder R und beantworten damit eine von Ihnen erarbeitete Forschungsfrage. - Agricultural Economics, Environmental Sciences, Operations Research
- Bachelor Thesis
| Grasslands play an essential role in food production worldwide, covering a large portion of agricultural lands (FAO, 2021). Grasslands provide a variety of ecosystem services, including marketable ecosystem services (e.g., feed production) and non-marketable ecosystem services (e.g., biodiversity-related services). This means that they carry great policy importance (Huber et al., 2022). Like other sectors of agriculture, grassland-based systems are threatened by climate change and uncertain weather conditions, resulting in potentially lower and more variable incomes for farmers (Arora et al., 2020; Orlowsky et al., 2012). To cope with these new conditions, farmers can use various risk management instruments, such as financial insurance or different on-site management practices. Increasing plant diversity in grasslands is an important management practice that brings economic benefits to farmers through higher yields and lower risk (Baumgärtner, 2007; Finger & Buchmann, 2015), and public benefits through a positive effect on biodiversity-related ecosystem services (Isbell et al., 2011; Paul et al., 2020). This win-win effect of increasing plant diversity makes it an extremely important practice. However, in many countries single species grasslands are still the norm whereas it has been proven that a relatively small increase in diversity (e.g. four species) for intensive grasslands, increases the mean and decreases the variability of production (Schaub et al., 2020). Therefore, a review of the current state of the government support of plant diversity use in European grasslands is needed to understand what are the barriers to a more widespread adoption. - Agricultural Economics, Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences
- Bachelor Thesis
| Pesticide use and risk reduction are at the forefront of agricultural policy across Europe (e.g., Schneider, Barreiro-Hurle, and Rodriguez-Cerezo, 2023). Grapevine – being a very pesticide-intensive crop (e.g., Fouillet et al., 2022) carries a significant reduction potential and is thus the focus of reduction efforts, e.g., by replacing pesticides with mechanical alternatives (nets and traps), confusion techniques (pheromones), or by using the need for pesticides by relying on resistant cultivars (for example fungus-resistant varieties) (Pertot et al., 2017; Viret et al., 2019). Alongside such practices, pesticide use may also be made more efficient, i.e., by applying pesticides only when and where they are necessary. This can be done using drones, which have also proven successful in determining optimal timing and quantity for nitrogen fertilizer (Späti, Huber, and Finger, 2021) or the need for mechanical weed control intervention in winter wheat (Ziehmann, Huber, and Finger, 2024). However, due to the high costs (in acquisition, renting, as well as learning costs needed for operation and handling) of drones, their use is often not financially viable. Moreover, limiting factor for the use of unmanned aerial spraying systems in European agriculture is the high level of regulation (Anken et al. 2024, Stöcker et al. 2017). Grapevine, being a more high-value crop with a large reduction potential in pesticides as well as being a crop with high labor intensity, may make the use of drones for pesticide reduction more profitable, but more research is needed on this topic. The goal of this thesis is to assess the potential of drones for pesticide reduction in viticulture, by comparing benefits (i.e., reduction in pesticide quantity, number of applications, labor requirements) against drawbacks (i.e., associated costs). Moreover, the thesis shall reflect on the economic, regulatory and social boundary conditions for the use of drones. The goal is also to assess how this potential may differ between different pesticide categories (e.g., herbicides, insecticides, fungicides), or between production systems (e.g., organic systems, systems using mainly traditional varieties, or systems using mainly fungus-resistant varieties).
Literature
Anken, T., Saravanan, G., Waldburger, T., Werthmüller, J., Wohlhauser, R., & Sanderson, G. (2024). Transversal distribution of a spray drone applying different nozzles and measuring methods. Crop Protection, 179, 106603.
Fouillet, E., Delière, L., Chartier, N., Munier-Jolain, N., Cortel, S., Rapidel, B., & Merot, A. (2022). Reducing pesticide use in vineyards. Evidence from the analysis of the French DEPHY network. European Journal of Agronomy, 136, 126503.
Pertot, I., Caffi, T., Rossi, V., Mugnai, L., Hoffmann, C., Grando, M. S., ... & Anfora, G. (2017). A critical review of plant protection tools for reducing pesticide use on grapevine and new perspectives for the implementation of IPM in viticulture. Crop Protection, 97, 70-84.
Schneider, K., Barreiro-Hurle, J., & Rodriguez-Cerezo, E. (2023). Pesticide reduction amidst food and feed security concerns in Europe. Nature Food, 4(9), 746-750.
Späti, K., Huber, R., & Finger, R. (2021). Benefits of increasing information accuracy in variable rate technologies. Ecological Economics, 185, 107047.
Stöcker, C., Bennett, R., Nex, F., Gerke, M., & Zevenbergen, J. (2017). Review of the current state of UAV regulations. Remote sensing, 9(5), 459.
Viret, O., Spring, J. L., Zufferey, V., Gindro, K., Linder, C., Gaume, A., & Murisier, F. (2019). Past and future of sustainable viticulture in Switzerland. In BIO Web of Conferences (Vol. 15, p. 01013). EDP Sciences.
Ziehmann, E., Möhring, N., and Finger, R. (2024). Economics of herbicide-free crop production. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, accepted.
- Plant Protection (Pests, Diseases and Weeds)
- Bachelor Thesis
| Pesticide reduction represents a significant goal of current agricultural policy (e.g., Schneider, Barreiro-Hurle, and Rodriguez-Cerezo, 2023), and pesticide-free production systems are increasingly incentivized in Switzerland and Europe (Mack et al., 2023; Runge et al., 2022). Herbicides represent a major pesticide category and are often replaced with non-chemical alternatives such as mechanical weeding (e.g., harrowing) (e.g., Ziehmann, Möhring, and Finger, 2024). While effective in controlling weeds and contributing to reducing the amount of herbicides used in arable farming, the more frequent use of mechanical interventions for weed control is associated with an increased risk for soil compaction and erosion (Tran et al., 2023).
Remote-sensing technologies (e.g., satellites or drones) can be used to make the use of agricultural inputs more efficient, e.g., for fertilizer use, irrigation or pesticides (He, 2023). The thesis will use a bio-economic model that was developed to analyze the potential of remote-sensing technologies for additional purposes, such as more accurately determining the need for a mechanical weed control intervention in Swiss winter wheat production (i.e., by allowing for a detailed depiction of weed pressure in the field) (Ziehmann, Huber, and Finger, submitted). Remote-sensing technologies have the potential to significantly reduce the need for mechanical interventions. This potential and economic viability differs between production systems (i.e., between conventional but herbicide-free, pesticide-free, and organic production). To determine the potential of such technologies for Swiss arable production at large, assessments for other crops and farming contexts are needed.
References
Berti, A., & Zanin, G. (1994). Density equivalent: a method for forecasting yield loss caused by mixed weed populations. Weed Research, 34(5), 327-332.
Cousens, R. (1985). An empirical model relating crop yield to weed and crop density and a statistical comparison with other models. The Journal of Agricultural Science, 105(3), 513-521.
He, L. (2023). Variable rate technologies for precision agriculture. In Encyclopedia of Digital Agricultural Technologies (pp. 1533-1542). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
Mack, G., Finger, R., Ammann, J., & El Benni, N. (2023). Modelling policies towards pesticide-free agricultural production systems. Agricultural Systems, 207, 103642.
Runge, T., Latacz‐Lohmann, U., Schaller, L., Todorova, K., Daugbjerg, C., Termansen, M., ... & Velazquez, F. J. B. (2022). Implementation of eco‐schemes in fifteen European Union Member States. EuroChoices, 21(2), 19-27.
Schneider, K., Barreiro-Hurle, J., & Rodriguez-Cerezo, E. (2023). Pesticide reduction amidst food and feed security concerns in Europe. Nature Food, 4(9), 746-750.
Tran, D., Schouteten, J. J., Degieter, M., Krupanek, J., Jarosz, W., Areta, A., ... & Gellynck, X. (2023). European stakeholders’ perspectives on implementation potential of precision weed control: the case of autonomous vehicles with laser treatment. Precision Agriculture, 1-23.
Vangessel, M. J., Schweizer, E. E., Garrett, K. A., & Westra, P. (1995). Influence of weed density and distribution on corn (Zea mays) yield. Weed Science, 43(2), 215-218.
Ziehmann, E., Huber, R., and Finger, R. (XXXX). Remote sensing for herbicide-free agriculture: a bio-economic and policy appraisal. In progress.
Ziehmann, E., Möhring, N., and Finger, R. (2024). Economics of herbicide-free crop production. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, accepted.
- Plant Protection (Pests, Diseases and Weeds)
- Master Thesis
| Beschreibung und ökonomische Interpretation der Marktordnung eines Schweizer Agrarmarktes - Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences
- Bachelor Thesis
| Pesticide use in agricultural cropping systems is critical for food security but its adverse effects on human health and the environment have been repeatedly shown. Thus, promoting the efficient use of inputs in crop production, for reducing these adverse effects, is an urgent topic in the agricultural policy agendas globally (e.g Ahovi et al., 2024). In Switzerland, pesticide use is a highly debatable topic and the country has its own initiatives to mitigate the harmful impacts of pesticides (see Finger 2021). Consequently, understanding the factors that affect the performance of crop producers in terms of efficiency is necessary for promoting a more sustainable crop production (Devilliers et al., 2024).
- Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences, Economics
- Master Thesis
| Climate change is affecting agricultural production, lowering yields, increasing costs, increasing yield variability and thus causing financial losses for farmers (Webber et al., 2018). There are also negative implications for dairy production (e.g. Bucheli et al. 2022, Gisbert-Queral et al. 2021). Adopting suitable agricultural practices (e.g. cooling systems etc) is necessary for mitigating financial losses due to weather events (e.g. Vroege et al. 2023, Bucheli et al. 2022). Despite this, farmers may still experience financial losses due to weather conditions. In this regard, insurances are an essential complementary management practice for securing farmers’ viable income. Therefore, understanding the current state of the available agricultural insurance is essential for improving their effectiveness in compensating for farmers’ financial losses. Although the literature provides a though examination on the state of agricultural weather insurances offered in crop farming (e.g. Bucheli et al. 2023) and there are selected approaches documented in the literature (e.g. Deng et al. 2007), there is no overview research on and available insurances for heat and drought related damages in the dairy sector. - Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences, Economics
- Bachelor Thesis
| Drought, waterlogging and heat can cause yield losses in different crops. It is crucial for the Swiss agricultural sector and farmers’ risk management to compare the impact of extreme weather events on yields and the probability of major yield losses (Ribeiro et al., 2019; Schmitt et al., 2022), because farmers need to prioritize their risk management options based on their individual risk exposure. | How yield losses in different regions of a country are correlated during extreme weather events is important for agricultural risk management. For example, the agricultural value chain needs to know if the regional supply is secure during extreme weather events, or insurance companies are interested in this information, if regional risk pooling works under extreme weather conditions (Holly Wang & Zhang, 2003; Okhrin et al., 2012). | The global increase in temperature and humidity amplifies local impacts on livestock husbandry. Climatic extreme events like heat waves negatively affect milk producers, especially because cows experiencing heat stress may imply lower milk and milk component yields in Switzerland. This thesis uses rich data from swissherdbook and MeteoSwiss and provides causal estimates of temperature humidity shocks on milk production using an econometric analysis. Based on this assessment, the thesis quantifies its economic relevance, considering both quantity and price effects. Knowledge about climate change impacts on milk production provides highly relevant information for farmers and other stakeholders in the agricultural sector. - Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences
- Master Thesis
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