Hugo Hermelink
Area of expertise
Agricultural Economics
Degrees
- B.S. in Land and Water Management, Wageningen Agricultural University, The Netherlands
- M.Sc. in Project Economics, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Potential student research areas
- Creating added value locally by processing farm products into final products
- Promoting biodiversity by changing conventional farming into organic farming
- Creating good working conditions and pursuing clients willing to pay for this
- Recycling of organic waste or by products from farming and industry
- Calculating and improving energy efficiency in farming and agro-industry
- Promoting agricultural development without wasting “aid-money” and avoiding creating a beggar mentality
- Developing organic sugar free chocolate
- Developing a sustainable garbage collection on the farm and/or the village
- Is there a difference in conscience about work and nature between organic farmworkers and conventional farmworkers
- Differences of cadmium and lead content of cocoa per region
Biography
Mr. Hermelink initially worked as an international development consultant for a Dutch Company in Turkey, Egypt and Hungary. Since 1994 he work has worked as an entrepreneur in Costa Rica managing a family company dedicated to organic cocoa farming, production of organic fertilizer and recently producing organic chocolate. His farming methods are certified by the Rainforest Alliance and Ecologica for the European and the USA market. His company is involved in promoting sustainable cocoa farming in the Northern Zone of Costa Rica.