Relational factors between supply chain actors have been acknowledged to contribute significantly to competitiveness. With the example of the German market for organic apples the suitability of the concept of the Relational View for explaining competitiveness was investigated. Structured interviews were conducted with selected actors of the supply chain. Actors at all levels of the supply chain proved to be highly committed and described their business relations as satisfying and trustful. Strong vertical and horizontal ...

This thesis focuses on the intramuscular fat content (IMF) or the marbling of beef as main parameters of sensory beef quality. The aim is to identify the high variability of these traits and to verify possible influences such as genetics, age, gender and feeding strategies to increase marbling. The first part of this research focuses on the variation of quality traits within a genetically homogeneous line of an endangered German beef cattle breed “Rotes Höhenvieh” (RHV). The intramuscular fat content of beef samples ...

Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) is an important agricultural commodity that is important to the economies of many countries in the world. Due to cocoa’s dependence on fertile forests soils, its production is a major cause of deforestation and soil degradation in producing countries. When grown in agroforestry systems it can conserve biodiversity, sequester carbon (C), and maintain soil fertility. There are many cocoa agroforests which are managed without synthetic agrochemicals. Because organic cocoa certification is now ...

This thesis aims to analyze how further take-up of Material Flow Cost Accounting (MFCA) in practice can be encouraged to support sustainable development. To achieve the aim of the thesis, three studies on MFCA are conducted at multiple levels. The first study provides a better understanding of MFCA application at the corporate level in developing countries, which are characterized by rapid structure transformation leading to serious environmental problems. The second study considers the contextual and transformational ...

Climate change and extreme weather have far-reaching impacts on agriculture. They do not only affect agricultural production, but also fundamental assets that shape agricultural livelihoods. In this dissertation, I study the relation of weather and climate with agricultural land tenure in low- and middle-income countries. Secure access to land is of vital importance for farmers, but insecure tenure is a reality for millions of farmers around the globe. They are unsure whether they will be able to continue farming ...