Management change at Weuthen Group

Potato company Weuthen is preparing in time for the retirement of both directors and is therefore expanding the management team. Karl-Josef Dammer will retire at the end of 2025 and will be succeeded by Maria Kerres-Halcour. She has been working as Dammer's right hand at Weuthen for some time and will join the management team, where she will gradually take over Dammer's duties.

Buffen another 5 years
Ferdi Buffen, the figurehead of the company and also a prominent figure in the European potato sector, will remain involved with Weuthen for another five years. This way he can support the new management team, which can gain further experience with guidance. Otto Winkelhag will join the management from January 1 next year. He is currently responsible for the IT department of the RWZ group and is trained as a business economist and has an agricultural background.

'Big plans'
"With this change, we hope to continue Weuthen's success story in the future," says RWZ CEO Christoph Kempkes. "The sympathetic duo will become a colorful quartet with the addition of Kerres-Halcour and Winkelhag. The ample transition time gives Dammer and Buffen time to transfer their knowledge, because together we have big plans."

Buffen is also satisfied with his management colleagues, he says: "They have the right attitude and this step shows that Weuthen has a solid long-term strategy. That is important for our partners in the sector and for our employees."

Almost 140 years
Wilhelm Weuthen GmbH & Co. was founded in 1885 in Schwalmtal, located a stone's throw from the Dutch border. From this strategic location, the company is present in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. The potato company focuses on the trade in fries potatoes, table potatoes and onions. It also trades onions. Weuthen also includes Strahmann Potato, Kartoffel Centrum Bayern and Raiffeisen Agrarhandel Pfalz. In the Netherlands it has a partnership with Select Potato from Zeeland and Agrea from Limburg.