Research at Hochschule Geisenheim University

Creating Strategies for a Sustainable and Livable Future

Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss, Sustainability Targets – We're Meeting the Planet's Most Urgent Challenges

Our mission is to develop resource-efficient, innovative, and sustainable solutions in the area of agriculture and food. Our work spans a broad range of key issues: advancing organic, climate-resilient cultivation strategies for specialty crops, developing sustainable production and marketing methods, and designing livable cultural landscapes and urban regions. By uniting ecology, profitability, and a focus on quality of life, we aim to create a sustainable future in which society and nature can flourish together.

Our Focus Areas

Sustainable Cultivation Systems for Specialty Crops

Cultivating grapevines, fruit, vegetables, and ornamentals is particularly resource intensive – as such, a careful balance between producing the highest quality products possible and ensuring sustainable practices needs to be struck.

Through our research, we are developing innovative, ecofriendly strategies that ensure healthy harvests and preserve resources. We breed varieties and growth forms that are optimally adapted to climate change, environmental factors, and potential pests and pathogens. Modern sensor systems help control water and nutrient supply with pinpoint accuracy, alternative plant protection strategies – such as the use of antagonists – strengthen plants and their environments, and new digital techniques make precise management measures possible. Together with our partners, we are establishing diverse cultivation strategies that promote biodiversity and preserve ecosystem functions, creating an economically and ecologically sustainable future for viticulture and horticulture.

Innovative and Safe Processing and Marketing for Plant Products

Sustainability in food production spans the entire journey, from cultivation and processing to the moment the product reaches the customer. At every stage, product quality and safety needs to be guaranteed. The bioeconomy plays a key role in this context, enabling the more efficient use of resources, processes, and systems, while supporting the livelihood of the businesses that produce them. 

Through our research, we develop energy and resource-efficient methodologies for processing plant products and extracting valuable ingredients from crops and by-products. We examine microorganisms as natural protective cultures, evaluate the health effects of plant-based ingredients, and conduct sensory tests with our university panel. Market research, consumer behavior analyses, and industry data deliver essential insights for sustainable marketing strategies, particularly in the wine industry. We also analyze the logistical processes, from packing to distribution, and boost the efficiency and sustainability of the entire value chain with the help of modern, digital technologies.

Livable Cultural Landscapes and Urban Regions

Intensified land use has reduced valuable landscape features and biodiversity in many areas. Urban regions are also under pressure to maintain quality of life through green infrastructure such as parks and green belts.

Through our research, we develop methods to optimize and assess urban open spaces and enhance their social sustainability. We create techniques for greening sites with limited soil and for using plants in urban areas in a targeted manner, particularly in the context of climate change. For viticultural landscapes, we design strategies to adapt to climate change and preserve rare species. Additionally, we develop concepts for multifunctional, ecologically valuable, and attractive landscapes that enable new, sustainable production scenarios.

Questions about Our Research?

Please get in touch!

Christiane Jost
Dr. Christiane Jost
Building 5924
Room 01.01
Phone +49 6722 502 6334
Christiane.Jost(at)hs-gm.de Details

News & Latest Projects

Hochschule Geisenheim University at EUROVINO and ProWein

Photo: WOODWORKS

EUROVINO 2025: Experience HGU’s non-alcoholic wine innovations

 

Karlsruhe, March 9–10, 2025: We will be presenting the newest developments in the field of non-alcoholic wines at EUROVINO, the trade fair for wine. Come visit us in Hall 1 | Stand F14.

Visitors can look forward to a special highlight in the ‘Wine Experience’ tasting area, where the innovative dealcoholized Rieslings from Hochschule Geisenheim University can be sampled. Dr. Matthias Schmitt from the university’s Department of Enology explains: “We are offering the opportunity to taste three of our dealcoholized Rieslings, each with a different CO2 content: 1.6, 3, and 10 g/L, comparable to a wine, a Secco and a Sekt. Visitors can thus experience how carbon dioxide boosts the mouthfeel and aroma intensity of non-alcoholic wines. Our research shows that the right carbonization contributes significantly to sensory qualities.” Visitors will therefore be able to take in cutting-edge scientific findings in a liquid form, an experience that is sure to bring the future of non-alcoholic wines to life!

Hochschule Geisenheim University at ProWein 2025: Innovation, Research, and Industry Insights

Düsseldorf, March 16–18, 2025: Hochschule Geisenheim University is back at ProWein, the international trade fair for wines and spirits. Come visit us in Hall 1 | Stand C131, where our Geisenheim colleagues will provide you with exciting insights into research, teaching, and current industry topics.

 

Technical Lectures and Tastings 

As a long-standing member of the Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP), Geisenheim’s winery will be presenting selected wines at the joint VDP stand, including the agrivoltaic wine from the Wissensdurst line.

A particular highlight will be the lecture by Professor Manfred Stoll (Department of General & Organic Viticulture) as part of the ‘Sustainable Wine Roundtable’ event. On Sunday, March 16 at 11:15 a.m. in the VDP Area (Hall 1 | Stand C99), he will present on the VitiVoltaic agrivoltaic research facility, discuss initial findings, and introduce the first voltaic wine from Geisenheim’s platform for resilience research.

 

ProWein Business Report & Market Analyses

On behalf of ProWein, Hochschule Geisenheim University conducts the ProWein Business Report each year. For the 2025 report, over 1,300 experts from over 30 countries were surveyed regarding the current challenges and outlooks in the industry. Professor Simone Loose, head of the Department of Wine and Beverage Business: “From economic challenges to changing consumer preferences, the wine industry is facing a transformation. Innovation in terms of product development and communication is crucial in order to stay competitive in the long term.”

Detailed findings from the report can be accessed via the following link: https://www.prowein.de/de/Media_News/Presse/Pressemeldungen/ProWein_Business_Report_2025_blickt_in_die_Zukunft_des_Weins

 

New Insights: Spirits Market & Business Forum

For the first time, a separate ProSpirits Business Survey was conducted. The results were published in February.Other industry topics and market analyses will be presented on in the ProWein Business Forum (Hall 16).

Special Events:

  • March 16, Halle 16 | K05: ‘The Shrinking Middle Class of Wine’ – Panel with Joel Peterson & Professor Simone Loose
  • March 16, Halle 16 | K05: ‘Sustainable Wine Tourism’ – Lecture from Professor Gergely Szolnoki (Professor of Market Research at Hochschule Geisenheim University) & Dr. Ricardo Nunez
  • March 18, Halle 16 | K05: Presentation of the ProSprits study with Dr. Jerome Honerkamp & Professor Simone Loose

 

Study Advice & Further Education

At our stand we will provide you with comprehensive advice on our degree programs, including

  • Bachelor's degree programs: International Wine Business – German Program (B.Sc.), International Wine Business – English Program (B.Sc.), Viticulture and Enology (B.Sc.)
  • Master's degree programs: Wine Business Management (MBA), Vinifera EuroMaster (M.Sc.), VITIS-VINUM (M.Sc.), Viticulture, Enology and Wine Business (M.Sc.), Wine Business (M.Sc.)

You can register in advance for consultation slots. To learn more, please visit: https://www.hs-geisenheim.de/index.php?id=2891

 

Further Education in the Master's Program: Part-Time or Consecutive

Hochschule Geisenheim University offers a wide range of further education opportunities at a master’s level for (prospective) specialists and managers in the national and international wine and beverage industry.

In addition to various traditional full-time master’s degree programs, which the university offers together with renowned European partners, Geisenheim also introduced its first part-time distance learning course in 2021: the Wine Business Management MBA. With modules such as personnel management, corporate management, tax issues in the wine industry, and controlling, the focus of the program is on various areas business management combined with a practical approach to current topics in viticulture and enology.

The part-time degree program comprises twelve modules in total. Students learn through an exciting mix of self-study and in-person seminars, as well as carrying out various written and virtual learning tasks. Students receive both digital and printed study materials, with supplementary teaching materials and in-depth exercises available on a virtual learning platform. Six to eight days in each of the four semesters involve in-person teaching at Hochschule Geisenheim and serve to deepen students’ acquired knowledge. The course begins in both the summer and winter semesters.

For targeted professional development, Hochschule Geisenheim University offers four short-format, part-time certificates as academic distance learning courses: ‘Management in the Wine Industry’, ‘Marketing in the Wine Industry’, ‘Viticulture & Enology’, and ‘Finance, Controlling and Taxes’. All courses conclude with a Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS). It is also possible to take individual modules as a certificate course.

More information is available under: https://www.hs-geisenheim.de/management-in-der-weinwirtschaft-mba

We look forward to seeing you at ProWein 2025!

 

Categories: MyHGU-App, Mein-Netzwerk, Messe, Fachmesse, Presse und Kommunikation, Alumni, FORSCHUNG, Projekte, Wissensdurst, Wein- und Getränkewirtschaft, Professur für Marktforschung, Weintourismus, Allgemeiner und ökologischer Weinbau, Nachrichten

Research brochure (click to enlarge)

Our University has unique opportunities to conduct scientifically recognized and applied research along the entire value chain of special crops. In doing so, we benefit both from a strong network of national and international partners and our own excellent research infrastructure at Geisenheim. Vice-President of Research Professor Annette Reineke

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