President & CEO of Portugal Fresh, Executive Vice-President of the Confederation of Portuguese Farmers, Executive Vice-President of Lusomorango - Berries Producer Organization, Director of the Agrifood Chain Programme at AESE Business School, Partner at Casa Prudencio - Agribusiness company (PT)
Qualification
Goncalo Santos Andrade has been representing the Portuguese F&V sector in more than 50 countries, on four different continents, during the last eight years. Five years ago he joined the board of the Portuguese Farmers’ Union, where he was responsible for all issues concerning climate change and environment. Apart from that he has more than 30 years of experience concerning the soft fruit industry and other fruit and vegetables products. In 2005, he founded Lusomorango, S.A. – the 1st Berries Producer Organization in Portugal. From 2006 to 2008 he was the vice-president of FNOP – Portuguese Federation of Producers Organizations. He is the fourth generation to run the family agricultural business Casa Prudencio.
CEO, gfa - consulting gmbh (AT)
Wolfgang Braunstein studied business administration. He has been working as a consultant focussing on strategy- and organisational development, co-operation, marketing and operational programmes since 1990. Since 1992, he has been advising producer organisations for fruit and vegetables as well as regions. Since 1996, he has been the executive partner and CEO of the consulting company gfa-consulting gmbh, that a.o. deals with the branches food and regional development. gfa-consulting gmbh is one of the leading consultancy companies in the German-speaking region specialising in the establishment of producer organisations and their operational programmes. In 2005, the team at gfa-consulting gmbh created and organised the first ICOP conference as a specialist and networking event for European producer organisations in the fruit and vegetable sector. The 20th anniversary edition will now take place in 2026.
Managing Director, Agriculture and Rural Development Section at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water Management (AT)
Having grown up on a mountain farm in the Zillertal (Tyrol), Johannes Fankhauser received a comprehensive agricultural education, from the Rotholz Agricultural Technical School to his studies in agriculture at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna.
He is throughly familiar with all aspects of farmers’ concerns as well as domestic agricultural policy. His professional experience includes roles at the Austria Bio Garantie certification body, as deputy chief of staff in the Ministry of Agriculture, as a market policy advisor and head of the Department of Rural Development, Education, and Advisory Services, Rural Youth and Women in Agriculture Division at the Austrian Chamber of Agriculture. Since May 2018, he has been Managing Director at the Agriculture and Rural Development Section at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Climate and Environmental Protection, Regions and Water Management.
European Policy officer, AREFLH (EU)
Michele Gentile is a European policy officer specialised in institutional relations, and European governance, with an academic background developed across Italy, France and Belgium in European studies and puplic policy. At AREFLH (Assemblée des Régions Européennes Fruitiéres, Légumiéres et Horticoles). Michele works directly on the representation of the fruit and vegetable sector within the European Union policy framework. As Policy Officer, he coordinates institutional outreach activities with key EU stakeholders, including the European Commission, the European Parliament, and Member State representatives. He represents AREFLH in five EU Civil Dialogue Groups and other relevant institutional forums, contributing to exchanges on agricultural policy, market organisation, sustainability trade, and the future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). A central part of his work is monitoring legislative developments, engaging with policymakers, and helping shape strategic advocacy.
Head of the Fruit and Vegetable Product Range Management Department, SPAR Österreichische Warenhandels AG (AT)
His Philosophy: ‘It’s ok if you can’t do something, but it’s unacceptable if you don’t even try!’
Head of Business Development and Sales, Co-Founder, hexafarms GmbH (DE)
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Managing Director, Grupa Producentów Owoców 'Polskie Jagody' Sp. z o.o. (PL)
Dominika Kozarzewska serves as CEO of Polskie Jagody, a leading producer organization cultivating 180 hectares of premium soft fruit – including blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries – in Poland’s Lubelskie region. A prominent industry advocate, she sits on the Board of the Polish Blueberry Promotion Foundation, driving nationwide initiatives to boost berry consumption. Internationally, Kozarzewska represents Poland within the International Blueberry Organisation and serves on the Board of Global Women Fresh.
Managing Director amcAUSTRIA, Chairman, LGV Sonnengemüse e.Gen. (AT)
Josef Peck has been working in the fruit and vegetable sector since 1989. In 1997, with the Seewinkler Sonnengemüse (SGV) producers’association, he was one of the first organisations in Austria to achieve recognition as a vegetable producer organisation. Since then, with the exception of a brief interruption, Seewinkler Sonnengemüse has been marketing its products in partnership with LGV Frischgemüse, which was at the time the largest vegetable producer organisation. In 2019, the two companies merged to form LGV Sonnengemüse, with Josef Peck as the sole managing director.The main products of LGV Sonnengemüse are the three key fruit vegetable varieties: cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes. Within these vegetable groups, LGV Sonnengemüse covers the intire product range. In addition, over 50 other vegetable varieties are grown in greenhouses and in the open field by around 130 family-run farms – all members of the producer organisation – and marketed by LGV Sonnengemüse. Peck is also a founding member of the amcAUSTRIA – amc Agrarmanagement Club Austria – and has been its chairman and president since 2011. amcAUSTRIA is the representative organisation of the Austrian producer organisations for fruit and vegetables.
Head of Unit B.1 Economical sustainability, DG Agriculture and Rural Development (European Commission)
Kerstin Rosenow is Head of Unit ‘Economic Sustainability’ at the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission. She leads a 30 persons strong team that fosters the achievement of the economic objectives of the CAP. She also coordinates work on interventions for rural development related to economic sustainability. The coordination of the preparation of the future CAP under the next MFF at her level is also part of her responsibilities.
Previously, she was the DG AGRI Head of Unit ‘Research & Innovation’ responsible for agricultural research under EU research programmes. Before that, she was Head of Unit in the EC Research Executive Agency (REA). She has been working in the EC for over 23 years after covering a managerial position in the German administration. For DG AGRI she coordinated negotiations with pre-accession and candidate countries and the preparation of the 2024-2020 CAP legislative framework. She studied law, politics and administration in Marburg, Grenoble and Bruges.
Director, Vitaprim (FR)
Guillaume Rostoll is from Nantes (France), in the fruit and vegetable growing region of the Loire Valley. As an agricultural ingineer, he has always worked closely with farmers, either directly on their farms or through farmers’ organisations. He has been working with vegetable producer organisations in Western France for 15 years, first in Brittany and then in the Loire Valley. From 2012 to 2020, alongside other roles, he managed a regional technical station, specialised in organic vegetables. He has been the Director of the Vitaprim Producers’ Organisation for five years. Since 2023 he has been a member of the Board of IDFEL Val de Loire.
Managing Director and Founder, CLATU Consulting Group (DE)
Cyriacus Schultze is a consultant and the founder of the CLATU Consulting Group. Together with 35 experts, he supports companies in the food industry, foodservice and hospitality sectors across Europe with strategy, innovation, market entry and transformation. He has lived and worked in Europe, Asia, North and South America, and has a solid background as an export manager, managing director and CEO in the catering industry. With over 30 years’ of experience and a proven track record of helping companies achieve outstanding results, Cyriacus Schultze and his colleagues are constantly in demand to devise strategies and solutions that drive results and growth. His focus is primarily on one question: What is really changing our industry – and what does that mean in concrete terms for companies, brands and products?
Chairman of the Working party for fruit and vegetables, Copa-Cogeca (BE)
Luc Vanoirbeek lives in Zepperen (Belgium), in the centre of the Belgian fruit-growing region. He has a Master’s degree in Political and Social Sciences and worked for the Flemish Farmers’ Union from 1986 until 2018. He spent the first years of his career as an educator in the ‘Young Farmers and Rural Youth Movement. In 1988, he became the national chairman of these organisations. In 1996, he moved to the study department of the Boerenbond as a consultant for social law. In this position, he took part in the European social dialogue in the agricultural and horticultural sector. From 2002 to 2007, he was a fruit-growing advisor and national director of the farmers’ organisation in Limburg. He then returned to the research department as a horticultural advisor. He then became a European and international advisor for farmers’ union. Since 2018, he has been General Secretary of the Federation of Belgian Horticultural Co-operatives (VBT) and Chairman of COPA-COGECA Fruit and Vegetables Working Group.
Managing Director, Fruitnet Media International (UK)
Chris White is managing director of Fruitnet Media International, the world’s leading publisher of information and insight for the global fresh fruit and vegetable sector. Chris has worked at Fruitnet for more than 38 years, during which time he has travelled all over the world to report on the business of fresh fruits and vegetables. Chris is a regular speaker and moderator at business conferences worldwide, he’s a member of the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists IFAJ, a liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts FRSA. He lives and works in London and Lucca.
