Strengthening scientific exchange between research institutions is one of the key pillars of the AgriDENZ project. The last six months have seen a lot of activity, with four exchanges taking place to deliver against this pillar.
One of the highlights was the visit of Dr. Thiagarajah Ramilan from Massey University, New Zealand, who was supported to attend the AgriGHG-2024 symposium in Berlin in October 2024. There, he presented his work on marginal abatement cost curves (MACCs) in dairy production systems and engaged with international experts in the field. He also attended the project’s opening and PSG meeting, and visited the Thünen Institute, where he shared key findings from his work and participated in fruitful discussions with researchers. Ramilan’s exchange also included a visit to the University
of Gießen and their ClienFarms project organic farm where he joined knowledge-sharing sessions and discussions on climate-neutral farming practices across countries.
In late November and early December 2024, Dr Nina Grassnick and Dr Craig Chibanda (both from the Thünen Institute) visited New Zealand. Nina (who introduced herself in our last newsletter) is the project coordinator on behalf of Germany. Craig leads the AgriDENZ project engagement with third countries, also on behalf of Germany. Their busy itinerary took them from Auckland to Wellington via Hamilton and Palmerston North. During the trip, they attended meetings at the Germany- New Zealand Chamber of Commerce, Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research, Massey University, NZAGRC, and
MPI, and visited Massey University’s Dairy Farm facility. They interacted with Winnie Switakowski, Deputy Head of Mission at the German Embassy in Wellington. These visits provided opportunities to introduce the AgriDENZ project to stakeholders and explore pathways to strengthen collaboration between Germany and New Zealand to address the challenges of GHG emissions from agriculture. It was also an opportunity to continue developing the project work plan.
Finally, between March and April 2025, two additional members of the project team from the Thünen Institute visited New Zealand. Dr. Felix Seidel, who leads the work package on soil carbon, spent time visiting colleagues from Manaaki Whenua / Landcare Research, The University of Waikato, and MPI. Topics covered during his visit include the potential impact of hedges / silvopasture on grasslands, methods for measuring soil organic carbon and, monitoring and management of wetlands and peatlands. Felix will follow up his visit with a series of online meetings in September and October aimed at
contributing to a joint research gap analysis between the German and New Zealand partners. This work will help pave the way toward more sustainable and climatefriendly agricultural soil management.
At the same time, Dr. Felicitas Schneider, who leads the work package on food loss and waste (FLW) for AgriDENZ, engaged in activities aimed at strengthening collaborations with existing and prospective research partners. These included attending a composting workshop organized by the City to Farm Zero Waste Initiative north of Auckland, giving guest lectures at The University of Auckland’s School of Environment, the University of Otago and Massey University / Riddet’s Sustainable Nutrition Initiative, visiting food rescue initiatives in Auckland and Wellington, exploring food hubs in Hawke’s Bay and Auckland, and exchanging ideas with representatives from Kai Commitment. In addition, she met with offic ials from MPI and the New Zealand Ministry for the Environment to discuss national policies and strategies to address FLW. Felicitas shared her extensive knowledge on European perspectives of FLW and had several fruitful discussions on how researchers and policymakers from Germany and New Zealand could work together to tackle FLW more effectively.
