Research​/PhD Position in Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics

Organisation/Company KU LEUVEN Department Bioscience Engineering Research Field Economics » Agricultural economics Economics » Environmental economics Economics » Food economics Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Final date to receive applications 31 Aug 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Country Belgium Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Offer Starting Date 1 Oct 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by a EU programme Reference Number BAP
- Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

HSFood4

All – Healthy & Sustainable Food for All through Agri-food System Reconfiguration, Labelling, Literacy, and Inclusive Environments - is an ambitious interdisciplinary research project, funded through the Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO) SBO programme. The project brings together expertise in agricultural and environmental economics, nutrition, consumer behaviour, data science, sustainability assessment, governance, and participatory research. Despite growing awareness on sustainability and healthy diets, dietary patterns only improve slowly due to a lack of incentives and facilitators for consumers.

Information is fragmented, labels are often confusing, and food environments frequently make healthy and sustainable choices difficult. At the same time, food producers and retailers struggle to communicate sustainability efforts in ways that are meaningful and trusted by consumers.

HSFood4

All addresses these challenges by:

• Integrating environmental, nutritional, social, and economic data.
• Developing innovative multi-dimensional food labelling and communication tools.
• Studying consumer behaviour, food literacy, and food environments.
• Testing behavioural interventions and communication strategies.
• Co‑creating solutions through citizen research labs and stakeholder engagement.
• Delivering evidence-based recommendations for industry and policymakers.

This research/PhD position focuses on advancing sustainability assessment methods and developing consumer-centred communication formats that effectively support sustainable food choices.

You will contribute to:

• Develop detailed consumer profiles related to environmental concerns, food sustainability motivations, environmental literacy, trust, and attitudes towards sustainability labels.
• Analyse existing datasets on food consumption and sustainability perceptions and contribute to building integrated consumer and product-level databases.
• Study how environmental sustainability information can be communicated effectively to diverse groups of consumers.
• Collaborate with food industry stakeholders to identify sustainability indicators that are scientifically robust, operationally feasible, and relevant to consumers.
• Contribute to the development of sustainability assessment approaches that combine existing secondary datasets with targeted primary data from food producers.
• Participate in the design and evaluation of innovative multi-dimensional front-of-package communication formats and sustainability visuals.
• Conduct consumer choice experiments, behavioural studies, and focus group discussions to evaluate the effectiveness of sustainability communication tools.
• Publish research findings in international peer‑reviewed journals and present your work at national and international conferences.
• Engage with stakeholders from the food industry, civil society, government, and consumer organisations through workshops and knowledge‑transfer activities.
• You hold an EU Master’s degree in Bioscience Engineering, Agricultural Economics, Environmental Economics, Natural Resources Economics, Food Economics or another relevant field of Applied Economics or Bioscience Engineering with excellent study results (you have obtained at least a distinction or graduated cum laude) – or an equivalent degree of higher education.
• You have a keen interest in scientific research on agrifood systems, environmental sustainability, and food consumer behaviour – and more generally in the research topics of the Division of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics.
• You have experience with or are eager to work with large…