Agri Benchmark

What Agri Benchmark does

Agri Benchmark is a global non-profit agricultural benchmarking network, founded in 2006 and operated jointly by the Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute (a German federal research institute) and global networks gUG (a non-profit company), headquartered in Braunschweig, Germany. The network traces its methodological roots to the International Farm Comparison Network (IFCN) founded in 1997 and applies a proprietary Standard Operating Procedure called the Typical Farm Approach to build standardised, representative farm models across six agricultural sectors: Beef and Sheep, Cash Crop, Pig, Poultry, Horticulture, and Fish. A network of country-level research partners in 30+ countries contributes farm-level data annually on capital inputs, labour, land use, animal and crop performance, feed, costs, and prices; results are aggregated, validated, and republished in sector reports, the Global Result Data Base, and Global Producer Price Indices covering 34 countries for cattle and 16 for sheep.

The platform's customers span five distinct segments: producers and farmers, agricultural researchers and research institutions, policymakers and government agencies, agribusinesses, and producer organisations. Agri Benchmark monetises through three streams: (1) project grants and public funding (EU Horizon 2020/Horizon Europe, BMBF, Lower Saxony ministry); (2) corporate sponsorship packages that grant agribusinesses data and knowledge access in exchange for financial support (sponsors include Atria, Topigs Norsvin, ISN, MSD, Premium Food Group, Pellon among others); and (3) fee-based training through the Agri Benchmark Academy (EUR 850 per participant), launched in February 2025. Distribution is anchored by annual sector-specific conferences alternating between European and non-European host countries plus the Global Forum event, supported by an online publications catalogue and a network of partner research institutes including BFAP (South Africa), InterPIG, and German and EU research consortia.

Name

Agri Benchmark

Legal name

agri benchmark (operated by Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute and global networks gUG)

Website

https://agribenchmark.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Economic Research and Benchmarking

NAICS

Support Activities for Animal Production (11521)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Livestock & Herd/Flock Operations Management Advisory (Nutrition, Housing, Performance) (AFACAJAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Farm Finance, Input Procurement & Risk Tools (Budgeting, Inventory, Insurance Links) (AFAAAFAO)

Keywords

• Agricultural benchmarking
• Farm economics research
• Typical farm approach
• Agricultural data network
• Comparative farm analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Braunschweig

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Project funding and grants: Agri benchmark is a non-profit activity funded by public and private institutions and clients. Funding comes through sponsoring relationships (in exchange for data and knowledge) and specific project grants. Projects from Horizon 2020 (EU), national ministries (BMBF, Bundesland Niedersachsen), and other (inter)national project donors are mentioned.
2. Sponsorship: Sponsors provide financial support and receive data and knowledge in return. Multiple sponsors are listed for conferences and the Academy program, including companies such as Atria, Topigs Norsvin, Pellon, ISN, MSD, Premium Food Group, and others.
3. Academy participation fees: The agri benchmark Academy charges a participation fee of EUR 850 excl. VAT for self-payers. Fees cover the program, field trips, and farm/slaughterhouse visits. Dinner, breakfast, and accommodation are included.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Agri Benchmark operates a global, non-profit network that builds and maintains internationally standardised "typical farm" data models across six agricultural sectors (Beef and Sheep, Pig, Poultry, Cash Crop, Horticulture, Fish) covering 30+ countries. Its core deliverables are annual sector reports, an underlying typical-farm database, sector-level time-series data, Global Producer Price Indices for beef cattle and sheep, and Tailormade Studies for custom competitiveness, environment, animal welfare, and trade-policy analyses. The Agri Benchmark Academy delivers training to young pig farmers, while the network is monetised through sponsorships, project grants, and Academy fees rather than commodity product sales.

Product overview

Agri Benchmark is a global non-profit network dedicated to comparing farm performance, economics, competitiveness, and sustainability across agricultural sectors. The core offering is its unique global database of typical farms and production systems, supported by the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) methodology for data collection and validation. The product portfolio includes six sector-specific report products: Beef and Sheep Reports, Pig Reports, Poultry Reports, Cash Crop Reports, Horticulture Reports, and Fish Reports. Additional offerings include Sector Data Tools providing time-series data on inventories, production, prices and trade, Tailormade Studies for custom research projects, and the Agri Benchmark Academy for farmer education. The network operates through global partnerships and provides both the data infrastructure and analytical tools for international agricultural benchmarking.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Agri Benchmark Academy: Educational initiative for young pig farmers worldwide covering farm management, global economics, animal welfare, and environmental analysis.

Products and services

• Global Farm Data Sets Unique global database of typical farms and production systems covering capital inputs, labour, land use, crop operations, animal performance, feed, overhead and finance costs across crops, horticulture, beef, sheep, pigs, poultry, and selected fish species. Used by researchers, policymakers, and agribusinesses for cross-country benchmarking and profitability analysis. Updated annually with data not older than 1 year.
• Beef and Sheep Reports Annual benchmarking reports for cow-calf, beef finishing and sheep production systems, covering latest global, regional and country-level developments, price indices, and sector data on inventories, production, consumption and trade. Targeted at researchers, policymakers, beef and sheep value-chain participants.
• Pig Reports Annual benchmarking reports for sows, piglet production, piglet rearing and pig finishing, presenting results of annual benchmarking exercises, latest developments and sector data including inventories, production and prices. Intended for pig sector stakeholders, researchers, and policymakers.
• Poultry Reports Comprehensive global database and reports of typical poultry farms and production systems covering production cycles, live weights, mortality rates, feed conversion ratios, prices and costs. Used by poultry sector researchers, policymakers, and value-chain participants.
• Cash Crop Reports Annual reports of typical farms including crop rotations and crop-specific production systems for over fifteen crops, covering farm equipment, labour, land use, fertilizer, seed inputs, and pesticide costs. Used by arable farming researchers, policymakers, and value-chain participants.
• Horticulture Reports Reports of typical farms for horticulture covering crop rotations and crop-specific production systems for fruits, including farm equipment, labour organisation, land use, fertilizer and seed inputs, and pesticide costs. Used by fruit-sector researchers, policymakers, and value-chain participants.
• Fish Reports Reports and data covering trout, carp, pangasius, salmon, seabream, seabass aquaculture production systems, and fishing vessels including the brown shrimp fishery. Used by aquaculture and fisheries researchers, policymakers, and value-chain participants.
• Agri Benchmark Academy Paid training programme (EUR 850 excluding VAT per self-payer) targeting young pig farmers worldwide, covering farm management, global economics, animal welfare, sustainability, and digital tools via lectures, hands-on data sessions, field trips, and farm/slaughterhouse visits. Includes dinner, breakfast, and accommodation. Sponsors include Atria, Topigs Norsvin, Pellon, ISN, MSD, Premium Food Group.
• Tailormade Studies Custom research projects using the agri benchmark network, methodology, and data infrastructure for studies on competitiveness, environment, animal welfare, and agricultural and trade politics. Commissioned by sponsors, project partners (e.g., EU Horizon projects, BMBF), and agribusiness clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Annual data updates ensure all data is not older than 1 year across all networks
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• SUCCESS – Strategic Use of Competitiveness towards Consolidating the Economic Sustainability of the European Seafood sectorminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025EU Horizon 2020 project (04/2025–03/2018) on competitiveness of European seafood sector. Agri benchmark Fish contributes farm-level economic data and benchmarking analysis.
• Atria / Atria TuottajatminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Finnish meat company and host of the 2024 combined livestock conference in Seinäjoki, Finland. Atria also sponsors the agri benchmark Academy 2026 in Seinäjoki and is a key network partner for poultry.
• Topigs NorsvinminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Sponsor of the agri benchmark Academy 2026. Provides support for the young pig farmer training program and gains visibility among the next generation of pig producers.
• Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025South African research institute affiliated with the University of Pretoria. Key network partner across Beef and Sheep, Pig, Poultry, and Horticulture networks. Host of the 2026 combined livestock conference in Pretoria, South Africa (June 2026).
• ValPro PathminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Project (09/2022–08/2026) within the agri benchmark Cash Crop network. Partnership focuses on international competitiveness and further development of production systems in arable farming, using the network's typical farm methodology.
• Alternative Krabbenwertschöpfung (AKW)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Project funded by the German Federal State of Lower Saxony (03/2022–05/2025) on alternative brown shrimp fishery value creation in the Wadden Sea. Agri benchmark Fish contributes economic analysis of fishing vessels.
• Projekt TeichLausitzminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021BMBF-funded project (10/2021–05/2025) on carp pond farming in the Lusatia region of Germany. Agri benchmark Fish contributes economic analysis of traditional carp aquaculture.
• GAIN – Green Aquaculture IntensificationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017EU Horizon 2020 project on green aquaculture intensification (10/2017–05/2018). Agri benchmark Fish contributed data and analysis as part of the Data Collection Framework of the European Union (DCF) and the Horizon 2020 project GAIN.
• CERES – Climate Change and European Aquatic ResourcesminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016EU Horizon 2020 project (03/2016–02/2020) focused on climate change impacts on European aquatic resources. Agri benchmark Fish datasets were analysed under three climate change scenarios for aquaculture and fishery production systems. Collaboration included joint workshops and data sharing.
• German Agricultural Society (DLG)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006DLG (Deutsche Landwirtschafts-Gesellschaft) co-founded agri benchmark with the Thünen Institute in 2006. In 2016, global networks took over the operational tasks previously handled by DLG. DLG continues to manage the dairy sector through cooperation with European Dairy Farmers (EDF).
• Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute (Thünen Institute of Farm Economics)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Thünen Institute of Farm Economics in Braunschweig, Germany holds the scientific lead of the agri benchmark network. It provides the research infrastructure, scientific expertise, and staff for data analysis, methodology development, and publication. The institute's president Prof. Dr. Birgit Kleinschmit serves as legal representative. Phone: +49 531 2570 1637.
• global networks gUG (haftungsbeschränkt)coreStrategic or Co-development Partnerglobal networks is a non-profit company responsible for the organisation and financial management of agri benchmark. It handles operational tasks including conference organisation, administration, and financial matters. Managing director: Jannik Aaron Dresemann. Phone: +49 531 2570 1507.
• InterPIG NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInterPIG is an international pig economics network with which agri benchmark Pig holds an annual joint conference. Many partners are members of both networks. Cooperation includes shared conferences, data exchange, and joint analysis of pig production economics globally.
• PPILOW – Poultry and Pig Low-input and Organic production systems' WelfareminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU Horizon Europe project focused on poultry and pig welfare in low-input and organic systems. Agri benchmark contributes farm-level economic data and analysis for welfare impact assessments.
• aWISH – Animal Welfare Indicators at the SlaughterhouseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU Horizon Europe project on animal welfare indicators. Agri benchmark applied its poultry tools within this project to assess welfare economics and farm-level performance.
• AGROECOLOGY Partnership – VALORAGROminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEU AGROECOLOGY Partnership focused on valorisation of agricultural production wastes through fermentation into pig and poultry feed. Agri benchmark contributes economic analysis of feed alternatives.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Gro Intelligence: Gro Intelligence applies data science and satellite-derived agricultural analytics to global crop, livestock, and supply-chain forecasts. It competes for the data-driven agribusiness and institutional customer segment that Agri Benchmark's sector data tools also serve.

Direct peers

• InterPIG Network: InterPIG is an international pig economics network with which Agri Benchmark Pig holds an annual joint conference and shares members. Both networks use comparable expert-mediated typical-farm methods to deliver cross-country pig production cost benchmarks.
• IFCN (International Farm Comparison Network): IFCN is the direct predecessor network spun out of the same Braunschweig-origin agricultural benchmarking infrastructure. Both IFCN and Agri Benchmark were reorganised from the same 1997 founding, providing comparable farm-level dairy/beef/crop economic analysis to research and policy clients globally.
• Teagasc: Teagasc is the Irish national agricultural authority providing farm-level economic benchmarks, advisory services, and policy analysis. Its National Farm Survey is comparable in spirit to Agri Benchmark's typical-farm cost analyses for Irish and EU livestock and crop farms.
• Wageningen Economic Research: Wageningen Economic Research produces farm-level economic analyses and policy impact studies for the Dutch ministry and EU, employing similar methodologies (accountancy data, sector benchmarking) for livestock and arable farms across Europe.

Broad incumbents

• AHDB (Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board): AHDB is a UK levy-funded body producing cost-of-production benchmarks, market intelligence, and post-farm economic analysis. It overlaps with Agri Benchmark's livestock and horticulture benchmarking offerings for an agribusiness audience.
• OECD Agricultural Statistics: OECD's agricultural monitoring (including producer support estimates and trade data) competes for the same international policy and agribusiness evidence-based market that Agri Benchmark serves. It is established, free, and well known.
• USDA Economic Research Service: USDA ERS produces farm-level cost-of-production estimates, sector outlooks, and policy impact analyses for US commodities. It serves the same agribusiness and government policy customer segments with public US-focused data that supplements Agri Benchmark's international coverage.
• EU Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN): The EU's FADN is the publicly funded incumbent that collects farm-level economic data across member states. It overlaps directly with Agri Benchmark on policy-impact analytics but is broader, more standardised, and free at the point of use for European policy clients.
• FAO Statistics Division: FAO Statistics collects and publishes global agricultural production, prices, and trade data that overlap with Agri Benchmark's sector data tools and country coverage. It is the largest public alternative, especially for policy and trade analytical use cases.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/johann-heinrich-von-thuenen-institute
• Instagraminstagram.com/agribenchmark_academy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Agri Benchmark