From 17 to 18 September 2025, the 10th Agroforestry Systems Forum of the German Association for Agroforestry (Deutscher Fachverband für Agroforstwirtschaft, DeFAF e.V.) took place at Justus Liebig University in Giessen. The Institute for Applied Material Flow Management (IfaS) was prominently represented with its AFaktive and AGROfloW projects and its participation in the MODEMA project, and made valuable contributions to the expert exchange.
With 350 registered participants, the forum, which takes place every two years as the central sector meeting for the agroforestry scene, set a new record. Over two days, the event offered a varied programme of specialist presentations, workshops, field trips, poster sessions and networking formats, bringing together representatives from science, agriculture, business and politics.
The IfaS was actively involved in several workshops and thematic discussions, supported by the HTW Saar’s water research group. Among other things, initial results from the IfaS work on the MODEMA joint project were presented. The focus was placed on the analyses of the actual time required for individual process steps in the establishment and management of agroforestry systems. These findings contribute significantly to the economic evaluation and technical optimisation of agroforestry systems, as they assist in making work processes more efficient and the systems more scalable in different types of farming enterprises.
Another workshop, initiated by IfaS together with specialist users and interested parties, focused on practical experience and the current state of knowledge in modelling agroforestry systems in relation to water balance and wind dynamics. Three thematic working groups discussed current methodological approaches, challenges and practical examples, including erosion, drought stress and microclimatic effects. The exchange between science and practice contributed to a critical reflection on existing modelling approaches and the further development of practice-relevant issues.
Martin Pesch from IfaS presents the first evaluation of the time measurements
of the recorded work steps when planting or harvesting an agroforestry system.
© IfaS
The topic of agroforestry is also receiving increasing attention at the political level: Daniel Köfer, State Secretary in the Hessian Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, Viticulture, Forestry, Hunting and Regional Identity, emphasised in his keynote speech that agroforestry can contribute significantly to the adaptation of agriculture to climate change.
The forum was rounded off with excursions to research and practical sites, which gave participants concrete insights into existing systems. On site, participants were able to exchange experiences and discuss challenges and success factors in implementation.
Further information and the official press release from DeFAF e.V. can be found at: https://agroforst-info.de/nachlese-forum2025/
© IfaS