Anniversary
Ecological foresight
Our organic site in Wiebrechtshausen is celebrating its twentieth birthday. Farm manager Axel Altenweger has been there from day one and tells us how the Executive Board’s passion helped him establish the location.
When KWS took over Wiebrechtshausen, a monastery estate that had been farmed conventionally until then, along with all the existing employees and inventory in 2002, two different worlds clashed: Axel Altenweger had just come from an organic monastery estate in Bavaria as the new farm manager, while conventional farming – including the use of chemical pesticides – was the norm for the former leaseholder’s workforce. Axel Altenweger also used to spray pesticide on the crops at his father-in-law’s farm. “But I didn’t want to come into contact with it any more – either as a user or during harvesting.”
And so the Bavarian had to shake up a few things on the farm KWS had recently taken over. The fact that he joined our company in the first place was due to a newly advertised position as manager of a farm for conducting trials in accordance with organic farming guidelines. A tree hugger at KWS, a company that until then had pretty much flown under the radar of organic farmers? “When I got to know Andreas Büchting, I soon realized: The issue is dear to his heart. And I myself see potential in leveraging overlaps between organic and conventional farming.”
Farm manager Axel Altenweger helped establish the location in Wiebrechtshausen twenty years ago.
Broad support from the Executive Board
Axel Altenweger felt the support of the company’s management right from the start. Four years earlier, in 1998, Andreas J. Büchting had already given his backing to a project group consisting of one representative each from the corn, sugarbeet, cereals and potato units. Philip von dem Bussche, who was also later appointed to the Executive Board, and Henning von der Ohe from Corporate Development and Communication were other important advocates who pursued a vision. They were a good argument for Axel Altenweger when he encountered skepticism: “The Executive Board sees it as a long-term investment – that was a mantra I often had to repeat.”
And there was another event that was conducive to the idea of a farm for organic trials: The European Union introduced the Organic Farming Regulation in 1998. “It stipulated that organic farms must also use organically produced seed,” states Axel Altenweger. “Previously, it was sufficient to use conventional seed and only to dispense with treating it by applying chemical pesticides. The new regulation also put the onus on breeders.”
From 2001 on, Axel Altenweger therefore began formulating various concepts in which he defined the requirements for an organic farm. The monastery estate had not yet been found at the time. Then, by chance, the opportunity to take over the current lease in Wiebrechtshausen arose.
▶ Axel Altenweger on the importance of organic farming
Increased shift to organic farming
Now our organic seed team is literally reaping the fruit of years of groundwork. “Conventional farmers are increasingly switching over when they realize it’s worthwhile for them. Organic farmers used to be considered hardliners by conventional farmers, but now even conventional farmers see the benefits for their own farms.”
Because political decisions mean that fewer chemical pesticides are available to farmers and raw materials and energy are becoming more expensive, they want to know, for example, how organic farming can manage without such agents. “That’s a positive development in our view,” says Axel Altenweger.
And even the relationship between the initially rather skeptical traditional organic farmers and KWS has grown stronger and stronger over the years, according to his observations. After twenty years, it is clear that organic farming has never been a fig leaf for KWS to greenwash conventional cultivation, but instead a clearly defined strategic goal.
◼ Photos from the birthday party
Objectives from the Strategic Planning 2031
KWS is thus one step ahead of the competition. But Axel Altenweger is aware that “the others are not asleep.” That’s why the Sub Business Unit (SBU) has its sights set on the next objectives. In conjunction with the “New Sales Models” of our Strategic Planning 2031, the aim is to provide farmers with our organic seed using an online shop concept. “That’s complicated because it involves a lot, also in logistical terms.” The SBU also wants to establish “Connected Seeds” to provide additional digital consulting for organic customers. And the “Sustainable Agricultural Practices” from the Strategic Planning are also to be spread globally with the goal of internationalizing organic business.
More staff
Wiebrechtshausen has also increased its staff: Jenny Matthiesen, who is responsible for variety development, came on board in 2020 and has been joined this year by Pierre Kling and Harmen Gehrke, two regional contact persons for organic farming in Germany. A total of six colleagues and around twelve seasonal workers are currently employed at the farm. The SBU intends to rely on the existing sales team in the area of field service. “It doesn’t make sense to set up something of our own alongside it. We assume that staff who sell conventional seed will also have our organic varieties on their radar or will discover them for themselves.” |
© KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA 2025
