30 March 2023
 

It seems like only yesterday when Douwe Zijp officially began his role as CEO in December 2020. Those two and a half years was truly an incredible run. As he moves on to rejoin the EWS Supervisory Board, let’s take a moment to look back at his time as CEO in this exclusive interview.


1. In your time as CEO, there's been a lot of improvement to the company structure for our growing company. How do you see the current structure you are leaving behind?

Douwe: One of my targets, when I started as the CEO, was a better organizational structure with a very diverse Managing Board that would lead the company and set its direction. Besides the Managing Board, we have adjusted our structure a bit in order to become even more efficient in our goal to drive operational excellence. As we are growing as a company and getting an even stronger market position in the tropical area, we also have to make sure our systems and support functions are up-to-date. I think we have made huge steps in the right direction but will have to continue to improve our systems while always keeping our innovative culture.

2. East-West Seed is a purpose-driven company with a strong mission and vision. What is your recommendation to all the talents who would want to work with EWS?

Douwe: I do hope that all future employees understand that East-West Seed is a very special company, with a clear focus on its purpose. Being a commercial company we have to earn our own money and make sure our company stays healthy enough to pay all the bills now and in the future. But above that, we are really committed to doing the best we can for our smallholder farmers. Many companies nowadays talk about how they care about smallholder farmers. But it’s East-West Seed that is really making a difference. Younger generations are more and more focused on doing the right thing. On leaving a positive impact and dedicating their work to a higher purpose. At East-West Seed, we have been doing that for 40 years now. So people who join us can truly make a difference and do something beyond just a job. At East-West Seed, we support smallholder farmers with better seeds for better yield because farmers are at the heart of everything we do.

3. How do you see the future of agriculture and smallholder farmers shaping up in the coming decades?

Douwe: It is our mission to support smallholder farmers. If we are successful many of them will grow further and become more professional. We will continue to support farmers all over the tropical world. We have done that in Asia for 40 years now and we expanded our business to Latin America and Africa where there are still an uncountable number of smallholder farmers that are in need of support. With the help of East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer, a foundation whose purpose is to train smallholder farmers in tropical countries, we will always focus on the needs of our farmers and help improve their lives.

I expect that farmers in tropical countries will slowly become bigger and more professional. They will earn a bit more and be able to invest in their business to get better results. Also, the demand for healthy food and especially vegetables will increase with the result that farmers can earn more money if they can supply good quality food to their customers. 

This development will take a while because change always does. Especially in agriculture. For us as a company with a ten-year horizon, it is important to anticipate it. But whatever will happen in the market, there will always be smallholder farmers that need our support to grow their crops successfully.

Website: https://www.eastwestseed.com/

Published: March 30, 2023