Agriculture Around the World: EMENA Edition

Continuing our series, we highlight Europe and experts covering the Europe, Middle East and North Africa (EMENA) regions. Our EMENA experts are Michael Lassen, a consultant-sales representative based in Denmark, and Emmanuel Hequet, a director of specialty products based in the north of France. Both have the exciting challenge of supporting farmers across many countries. 

Covering a vast expanse of countries, landscapes, and climates, the agricultural landscape in EMENA is notably diverse and planting schedules can vary. In fact, depending on crop or location, planting could happen any time throughout the calendar year. 

Ag and Culture

While his home base is in Denmark, Michael spends most of his time traveling to visit customers, acquire new customers and test, trial and market products. 

“I'm really lucky because I cover Europe, and when you look at it geographically, it's fairly small,” he said. “Western Europe is actually smaller than the United States but within that geography, you have maybe 15 or 20 languages and cultures.” 

Michael emphasized the importance of cultural nuances in agricultural practices across different regions. 

“Certainly, it plays a role in shaping agriculture in different places. There is a much bigger awareness about high-end branded, high-priced quality products like wine and cheese in places like France and Italy. The agriculture is more sophisticated, and they’re more into the value-added production. But when you move into areas like Denmark or Germany, it's more of the commodity type with large-scale production and lower prices just trying to compete in the world market.”

Emmanuel, tasked with developing business for KAS and managing the distribution network in the region, stresses the necessity of understanding the specific needs of growers, particularly considering the vast diversity within countries like France.

“If you're in the mountain area, you will see more small dairy production and very high-value cheese. If you go to the Southeast, you will see more wine vineyards. If you go south of Paris, you would only see small grain crops, and in the West, you would see a lot of livestock.”

The Start of the Ag Journey

Just as culture can shape the agriculture of a geographical region, agriculture has significantly influenced the lives of both Michael and Emmanuel from a young age. Michael’s grandparents and two of his uncles were farmers, and he fondly recalls spending holidays with them on the land. 

"That's where my interests originally came because I found it fun, you know? And I liked the atmosphere and everything that was going on," he reminisced.

Emmanuel’s farming experience also had a familial tie. 

“I grew up on a small dairy farm in the north of France. It was about 20 hectares (about 50 acres) with about 30 dairy cows, so we were working seven days a week, morning to night.”

Emmanuel’s involvement on his family dairy farm sparked his curiosity about ag as a business. 

“My big question has always been about understanding the value of what is produced on the farm after the goods leave the farm, or what we call the value chain,” he explained. “I have always been interested in the reality between the growers and the end consumer. It has been the biggest driver in my career.”

Opportunities for the Future

While ag technology and innovation are making exciting advancements around the world, Michael elaborated on an opportunity European farmers and ag professionals have. 

“In Europe, we have more restrictions on things such as the use of fertilizers. It forces the industry to be creative with solutions that help farmers achieve more with less, and that's really exciting — especially with improvements on things like seed coatings.”

Michael also explained how the technology focus is shifting.

“Traditionally, the focus has been more around fungicides and herbicides to control bugs and fungi, but now the focus is more on improving crop growth and the crop’s ability to withstand challenging conditions.”

Reflecting on the past and envisioning the future, Emmanuel noted how the evolution of technology in agriculture has helped increase efficiencies.

“I've been impressed, especially as a young boy growing up, to witness the evolution in equipment size, particularly the tractors and the options available, as well as the increased operational speed. My dad started farming in the 1950s using horses — it's quite surprising to think about.”

In reference to agriculture innovations, Emmanuel stated he is most looking forward to technologies focused on soil fertility. 

“I'm excited to see improvements in technology in relation to the soil. I think soil had been put to the side for a little bit, but now people understand it is a very high-level value to protect, develop and continue to understand. There is an open opportunity for us to improve the soil to help us continue to grow more with less input.”

The National Ag Month Celebration Continues

As National Ag Month draws to a close, we’ll travel to the LAMSA/AO market to complete our employee showcase. To view previous spotlights, visit our US and Canada features.