Stephan Büttner new CEO of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG

Markus Mühleisen leaving

Change of leadership at AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG: CFO Stephan Büttner (50) was appointed yesterday as the new CEO: On 1 January 2024 he will be taking over the role of Markus Mühleisen (57), who will leave the company at the end of the year before the scheduled end of his term in office as CEO on 31 May 2024. Furthermore, Stephan Büttner’s existing term of office, scheduled to conclude on 31 October 2024, has been extended until 31 October 2028.

“Following the departure of Markus Mühleisen, the appointment of Stephan Büttner as the new CEO is a logical and pleasant step for the Supervisory Board of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG. Stephan Büttner has played a major role in shaping AGRANA’s positive development as the Group’s CFO and also as CEO of the Fruit Division. He meets all the requirements for safeguarding the company’s growth, implementing the necessary transformations, and leading the organisation further on its road to success and a bright future,” says AGRANA’s Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Erwin Hameseder.

Stephan Büttner has already held various management roles as part of the AGRANA organisation since 2012 and has played a decisive role in its success to date. As CFO on the Management Board, he is currently responsible for the areas of Finance, Equity Investment Management, Legal Affairs, Compliance, Procurement, IT, Organisation and Investor Relations as well as for the Fruit Division. As the new CEO, he will also be taking on responsibility for the areas of Strategy and Business Policy, Sales Coordination, Public Relations, Human Resources and Corporate Secretariat.

After graduating in commercial sciences from the Vienna University of Economics and Business, Stephan Büttner initially worked at KPMG AUSTRIA GmbH. After moving on to Raiffeisen Ware Austria AG in 2001, he worked as CEO at its subsidiary Ybbstaler Fruit Austria GmbH from 2004. He has worked for the AGRANA Group since 2012. As CEO of AUSTRIA JUICE GmbH, a joint venture of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG and Raiffeisen Ware Austria-AG, he successfully managed the merger of AGRANA Juice GmbH and Ybbstaler Fruit Austria GmbH. In 2014, he became CFO of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG and has also been CEO of AGRANA Fruit since May 2021.

His appointment as CEO of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG is the pinnacle of a multi-faceted career. “I can’t imagine a professional environment more diverse than that at AGRANA. The people at our company have over decades established a sound reputation as bridge builders between agriculture and the industries which we supply. This is an asset particularly in volatile times and one which will become even more important in future: Trust-based business and customer relationships, outstanding access to commodities, new collaboration models and innovative spirit make us predestined to be the developers of solutions for our partners. I look forward to working alongside our great team at AGRANA, progressing further along and defining our development path,” remarks Büttner.

The Chairman of the Supervisory Board of AGRANA Beteiligungs-AG Erwin Hameseder thanks the exiting CEO Markus Mühleisen: “Markus Mühleisen guided the company very well through challenging times marked by multiple crises, the results have improved significantly, and the cornerstones of the new strategy were defined. The Supervisory Board certainly respected Markus Mühleisen’s decision to not to extend his mandate expiring by 31 May 2024 and to leave the company. On behalf of the Supervisory Board and the company I thank him for his good work in the past years.”

Exiting CEO Markus Mühleisen explains: “I would like to express my gratitude to all employees at AGRANA, to the Management Board and the Supervisory Board for the excellent trustful cooperation. Despite difficult times we were able to achieve a lot and laid the foundations for the next phase of AGRANA's development. Now is a good time to hand over the leadership. I wish AGRANA continued success.”

About AGRANA

AGRANA converts agricultural raw materials into high-quality foods and numerous industrial intermediate products. About 9,000 employees at 55 production sites worldwide generate annual Group revenue of approximately € 3.6 billion. Established in 1988, the company is the world market leader in fruit preparations and the foremost producer of fruit juice concentrates in Europe. As well, its Starch segment is a major manufacturer of custom starch products (made from potato, corn and wheat) and of bioethanol. AGRANA is the leading sugar producer in Central and Eastern Europe.

This announcement is available in German and English at www.agrana.com.