AGRAVIS: Change of management at the beginning of 2017

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Andreas Rickmers will become the new Chief Executive officer of #agravis Raiffeisen AG, having its headquarters in Münster and Hanover, as from 1 January 2017. The 51- year-old executive has just been appointed a Member of the Executive Board by the Supervisory Board of the agricultural trading and service organisation, and will become a Member of AGRAVIS’ Executive Board as from 1 September 2016. #andreasrickmers at the moment still holds the position of Divisional Head of the European agricultural activities of Cargill, having its registered office in Geneva/Switzerland.

“This means that we have clearly solved the important question of who to appoint as the successor to the position of CEO at an early stage, providing a solid sense of direction – as is usual at #agravis – in our farming-driven business”, states Franz-Josef Holzenkamp in his capacity as Chairman of the Supervisory Board, and adds: “Andreas Rickmers joins #agravis as an internationally experienced executive, who will continue to take AGRAVIS’ existing #corporate philosophy and its solid and profitable growth strategy a step further, and is, in our opinion, an excellent match with a view to the requirements of #agravis in regard to filling the position of CEO.”

Andreas Rickmers will take over as CEO from Dr #clemensgrossefrie, who has been successfully managing the #agravis group since it was established in 2004, and, during this period, has led it to become a € 7 billion company with a sound equity base, financial power and customer orientation. Holzenkamp, however, also emphasises the following: “There is still a full financial year ahead of us before said age-related change in management occurs, a year in which we will rely very much on Dr Grosse Frie, to steer #agravis Raiffeisen AG securely and orderly in a forward-looking, entrepreneurial-minded and responsible manner going forward, accompanying it during its changeover to the next generation of management.”