Dalsem's new CEO

Introducing Melle Kruisdijk

Melle Kruisdijk appointed as new Chief Executive Officer of Dalsem
 
·         Melle Kruisdijk was previously at Howden and Wärtsilä
 
·         Jan Pieter Dalsem to retire as Managing Director and assume new role as Senior Advisor within COFRA
 
·         Sustainability and growth in the US and Europe are new Dalsem CEO’s top priorities
 

Zug, Switzerland, 18 January 2023
COFRA Holding (“COFRA”) today announced that, as part of its sustainable food activities, Melle Kruisdijk has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of Dalsem, effective from 1 February 2023.

Jan Pieter Dalsem will retire as Managing Director and assume the role of Senior Advisor to Dalsem and COFRA’s Executive Chair of Sustainable Food, David Levin, in addition to COFRA’s broader group.

Dalsem is a leading developer of complete, high-tech greenhouse projects worldwide and was acquired by COFRA Holding in January 2022. Founded in 1932, Dalsem is deeply rooted in the innovative Dutch horticulture industry and has delivered large-scale greenhouse projects in more than fifty countries.

David Levin, Executive Chair of Sustainable Food at COFRA Holding, commented: “I am delighted to welcome Melle to COFRA as CEO of Dalsem. Controlled Environment Agriculture will be essential to meeting the world’s food needs over the coming decades. Melle embodies COFRA’s approach to doing business for good while delivering customer delight. He brings a wealth of experience in engineering, energy solutions, change management and quality leadership so is ideally placed to scale Dalsem’s business while focusing on greater sustainability.

I want to congratulate Jan Pieter for his success in building Dalsem into the engineering powerhouse that it is today and in building an outstanding family business. He has led Dalsem through a period of unprecedented growth and change, and transformed the company into one of the leading global players in Controlled Environment Agriculture. I look forward to his continued counsel as a senior advisor, as Melle and his team position Dalsem for its next phase of growth.”

Melle Kruisdijk, new Dalsem CEO said: “I am thrilled to join Dalsem, which has earned a global reputation as a trusted partner in the Controlled Environment Agriculture sector. With the climate crisis and a constantly expanding population, I am convinced that the world needs more high-tech greenhouses – which are even more sustainable – to ensure reliable food production. I look forward to working with the Dalsem and COFRA teams to scale the company further, particularly in the US and Europe, as we seek to innovate and produce more sustainable greenhouses.”

Jan Pieter Dalsem, current Managing Director of Dalsem, commented: “It has been an incredible privilege to lead Dalsem, with so many talented colleagues, through a 30-year period of international growth. I thank our customers in the US, Europe and around the world for their support and I am certain that under Melle’s leadership Dalsem will go from strength to strength.”

About COFRA Holding
COFRA Holding AG is a privately held group of companies active in various business sectors, including asset management (Anthos Fund & Asset Management), private equity (Bregal), apparel retail (C&A), real estate investments (Redevco), renewable energy (Sunrock) and sustainable food (Dalsem, Ontario Plants Propagation). Headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, the group employs more than 60,000 people across its business operations in Europe, the Americas and Asia. Each business operates in a spirit of engaged entrepreneurship while striving to be a “force for good” in the world – a guiding principle that has characterised the Brenninkmeijer family owners’ activities for six generations, since the founding of C&A in 1841. For more information, see www.cofraholding.com.

About Dalsem
Founded in 1932, Dalsem specialises in the development of high-tech greenhouses, having successfully delivered large-scale projects in more than fifty countries, including in the US and Europe. COFRA Holding acquired Dalsem – which is headquartered in Den Hoorn, The Netherlands – in January 2022 as part of COFRA’s diversification into sustainable food.

For more information, see www.cofra.com.