The Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Home Affairs (BMLEH) is funding the "AgriData Observatory" project at the university's Research Center for Law and Data Economics with € 280,000.
The background: From September 12, 2025, farmers will have a regulated right of access to certain data generated by their smart machines, which is collected during use in fields and meadows. This includes fuel consumption, driving speed and the weight of applied and harvested quantities. This is regulated by the new EU Data Regulation (Data Act). In order to make it easier for manufacturers and users of smart agricultural machinery to implement the regulation, Osnabrück University has developed a briefing on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Home Affairs (BMLEH). It summarizes the main contents of the data regulation. At the same time, the sample terms and conditions developed by the Federal Ministry with the support of Osnabrück University help manufacturers to bring their contracts with users into line with the Data Act.
"Our aim is to support farmers and manufacturers of smart agricultural machinery in meeting the new requirements for a fair balance of interests in the use of this data," says Osnabrück legal scholar Prof. Dr. Hans Schulte-Nölke, who is leading the project with his colleague Prof. Dr. Mary-Rose McGuire. Prof. McGuire adds that contractual practice in the agricultural sector is being systematically monitored in order to determine the current status quo of contractual chains using data from smart agricultural machinery. In addition, the introduction of the BMELH model terms and conditions will be monitored, recording who uses them and to what extent. On this basis, the researchers will identify best practices to find out which clauses and applications are proving to be effective and efficient. Finally, the further development of the BMELH model terms and conditions will be promoted so that contract practice can benefit from the results of the research.
"By examining contractual practice, identifying and compiling best practices and adapting the model terms and conditions, the research project is making a significant contribution to fair data exchange in agriculture," says the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. Interested parties are invited to participate in the project.
Further information on the project
Further information for editorial offices:
Prof. Dr. Hans Schulte-Nölke and Prof. Dr. Mary-Rose McGuire
Osnabrück University
School of Law
hans.schulte-noelke@uni-osnabrueck.de
mary-rose.mcguire@uni-osnabrueck.de
