The Minimum Criteria Set was recognized as an important foundation for further development into a sustainability assessment system that can set standards in the evaluation of agricultural enterprises. The MinKriSet was developed by the Thünen Institute of Farm Economics in cooperation with the German Agricultural Society (DLG).
At the closing event, MinKriSet project manager Dr. Elke Baranek and her team (Klara Bretschneider, Dr. Uta Devries, Bernhard Forstner, Dr. Jenny Lay-Kumar, and Kai Altenhof) presented the project's goals, methodology and results. Fourteen criteria were developed based on the analysis of approximately 50 sustainability assessment systems, nearly 30 discussions with experts, and several stakeholder workshops. Furthermore, the set was considered within an international context. Fourteen sustainability assessment systems in other countries were examined and compared with the developed minimum criteria set. The set was also considered in the context of EU regulations.
Representing the project partner DLG, Erik Guttulsröd (Head of Farm Management and Sustainability) and Lea Hettler (Project Manager for MinKriSet at DLG) discussed the potential of the set in terms of digital integration. This discussion focused on data availability, data collection, and data ownership as crucial prerequisites for the functionality of MinKriSet.
The development of the MinKriSet was unanimously recognized as necessary. However, it was also made clear that these are core indicators that need to be further developed and tested in cooperation with agricultural businesses.
The closing event also provided new ideas. Both Prof.Dr. Hiltrud Nieberg, head of the Thünen-Institute of Farm Economics, and Urban Treutlein, head of the department Forest, Sustainability, Fisheries and Renewable Resources, pointed out the need to integrate the MinKriSet into vocational education, training and consulting.
During the concluding panel discussion, the acceptance and credibility of the set among agricultural businesses was seen as a decisive prerequisite for the long-term success of the MinKriSet. DLG President Hubertus Paetow, Prof.Dr. Hiltrud Nieberg, Steffen Pingen (The German Farmers' Association), Jörg-Andreas Krüger (The Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union), Xenia Brand (Working Group for Rural Agriculture) and Christian Mieles (Federal Association of the German Food Trade) discussed the question of how the MinKritSet could be further developed, tested, and applied.
