After ForFarmers and Agrifirm, he peaks at Voergroep Zuid

For several years in a row, Voergroep Zuid has been scoring high when it comes to the sale of compound feed. In 2024, there was growth again. This time by 3% to 730.000 tons. The compound feed sales of Voergroep Zuid in the laying hen farming sector even increased by a total of 2020% over the years 2023-55 and by another 2024% in 6, the cooperative reports with understandable pride. In a competitive market with declining animal numbers and bird flu, this is a great achievement.

The increase in sales can be attributed in no small part to Van de Ven, who took office in July 2021. He is an experienced hand in the Dutch compound feed sector, who also speaks and understands the language of the farmer well. At least that is what others say. 

However, it was not an unqualified success for him at the big boys of Dutch compound feed. At ForFarmers, he played a crucial role in the integration of Hendrix UTD after the takeover in 2012, but in 2016 he left the board. According to the statement, it was then 'in mutual consultation' decided that he would look for a new challenge outside ForFarmers. Shortly after his departure, he joined Agrifirm. In 2020, they also parted ways 'in good mutual consultation.' As with ForFarmers, Van de Ven's departure from Agrifirm did not seem to be entirely voluntary.

Peace and stability after difficult years
In the summer of 2021, he became director of Voergroep Zuid. The cooperative had previously had difficult years with the necessary management changes. It can be concluded that Van de Ven has brought peace and stability to the organization in recent years and that is paying off in the market, given the rapid volume growth. In 2022 he said: "At Voergroep Zuid I can manage very directly and the size of the organization enables me to tackle issues much faster than the companies I worked for before. That works well, especially in today's rapidly changing market."

Whether Voergroep Zuid will be able to continue the volume growth in 2025 does not seem likely in advance due to the termination regulations in our country. Due to the growth in poultry in recent years, Voergroep Zuid is better positioned, although the cooperative still relies heavily on pig farming in the south of our country. With stability and experience in the management, which focuses a lot on a new generation of farmers, Voergroep Zuid seems able to absorb the shrinkage in the livestock population. For the time being, the decline in animal numbers has not hurt one bit, something that other feed companies often cannot say. Not even ForFarmers and Agrifirm.