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FarmStarter Hamburg (FarmStarter)
Project
Project code: ZUW-2025-03937
Contract period: 01.01.2026
- 31.12.2026
Budget: 345,819 Euro
Purpose of research: Applied research
The Hamburg agriculture and horticulture sector faces significant challenges. The horticulture of the Vier- und Marschlande region is particularly at risk, as increasing competitive pressure, rising production costs, and structural disadvantages burden the farms. At the same time, many operations lack family successors, making the continuation of existing businesses difficult. Young people willing to engage entrepreneurially play a central role in the sector’s future. Against this background, there is a research need to better understand the potential and needs of prospective founders, as well as the conditions for sustainable business succession and viable business models. The “FarmStarter Hamburg” project examines how farms without family successors can be maintained sustainably and how young entrepreneurs can be supported in founding new operations.
Key research questions include:
• What are the prerequisites, needs, and motivations of potential founders in agriculture and horticulture?
• Under which conditions are non-family business successions feasible?
• Which business and operational models are viable and transferable to the Hamburg context?
The project applies co-creative and transdisciplinary methods to develop practical solutions, support existing farms, and pilot new ventures. The aim is to promote, enable, and support young entrepreneurs in Hamburg’s agriculture and horticulture sector, while ensuring the continuity of existing farms through viable nonfamily successions. The project seeks to develop a “Hamburg Model” that provides a permanent platform for advising, training, and supporting farm takeovers and new business startups, serving as a nationwide pilot for the agriculture and horticulture sector.
Section overview
Subjects
- Agricultural Sociology
