“It will be important to showcase how innovative the agricultural machinery industry is”
Brussels, 21 June 2018 – Anthony van der Ley, CEO of LEMKEN GmbH, was elected new President of CEMA (www.cema-agri.org), the trade association representing the producers of agricultural machinery in Europe.
Commenting on the election, Mr. van der Ley said: “It is my absolute pleasure to assume the chairmanship of CEMA, the voice of the European agricultural machinery industry.”
“Agricultural machinery is a very innovative sector, pioneering ground-breaking technologies to meet societal challenges. In my new capacity as CEMA President, I look forward to showcasing the creativity that characterizes our industry, just like my predecessor Richard Markwell has so gracefully done in the last years. We need a productive and successful cooperation with the European Commission, Member States and the European Parliament, particularly on technical and economic issues, to boost Europe’s industrial and technological leadership in advanced farm equipment and bring European farming to the forefront of Digital and Precision Agriculture.”
“The future points to further developments in the areas of Farming 4.0 and Precision Agriculture in the next ten years. CEMA’s strategic document, AgriTech Vision 2030 will serve as a guiding light for the association’s action.”
A Dutch national, Mr. van der Ley has held numerous positions in companies operating both at the European and international level. Since 2012 he is the CEO of LEMKEN GmbH, a privately owned manufacturer of agricultural machinery with more than 1400 employees, located in Alpen, in Germany.
Anthony van der Ley takes over the Presidency from Richard Markwell (AGCO) who has chaired the association for the past four years. Mr. Markwell will now enjoy his retirement from active work life. On his experience at CEMA, Mr. Markwell recounted “It has been an honour and privilege leading CEMA. This is a great and noble industry, which provides the tools to allow the production of food in an increasingly sustainable manner.”
“I would like to wish great success to Anthony van der Ley. It is especially remarkable that for the first time in recent CEMA history the chairmanship will be assumed by a representative of an implement manufacturer. I am certain this will bring new energy to CEMA’s action”.
The official handover took place during the last CEMA Board meeting in Brussels on 20th June.
The CEMA President is elected for a two-year term and is eligible for re-election once.
Picture: Richard Markwell and Anthony van der Ley
