Skip to main content

Dr Alex Lissitsa elected co-chairman of DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe

Digital LAK-OE meeting in December 2020

During the ordinary meeting of the DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe (LAK OE) on 18 December 2020, Dr Alex Lissitsa, managing director of IMC, the Ukrainian agricultural holding with around 124,000 ha UAA, was elected co-chairman of the committee. In the future, he will be in charge of the committee's activities together with Stefan Dürr, president of Russia's EkoNiva Group and chairman of the LAK OE.

With the representatives of these two major agricultural players, Ukraine and Russia, the DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe will be receiving support from experts who have a profound knowledge of the industry, who are familiar with the special considerations of agriculture and who offer an extensive network of experts in their respective countries and beyond.

The members were all agreed that the active involvement of Dr Alex Lissitsa in the DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe will impact positively on the committee's results. Dr Lissitsa not only offers practical knowledge of agricultural management as the managing director of IMC (formerly International Dairy Company) but also extensive experience in organising professional exchange between representatives of the Ukrainian agricultural industry as president of the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club (UCAB).

The new co-chairman was born in a village on the border with Russia in northern Ukraine. After studying agricultural economics at the Agricultural University in Kiev, he transferred to Berlin's Humboldt University, where he continued his studies and subsequently obtained his doctorate. He then worked as a scientific employee at the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO) in Halle an der Saale. In 2006, he returned to Ukraine and founded the Ukrainian Agribusiness Club. This professional association, the largest in the country, represents the interests of the national and international agricultural industry in Ukraine. In 2012, as its managing director, Alex joined the management board of IMC, a listed agricultural holding company that is specialised in the production of cash crops and cultivates 123.9 thousand hectares in northern and central Ukraine. The company produces over 1 million tonnes of wheat, maize, sunflowers and soy, has in-house storage capacities for 554 thousand tonnes of cereals and exports agricultural raw products to various countries around the globe, particularly China, the EU and North Africa.

Dr Lissitsa is of the opinion that international information exchange is key to success in agriculture. He regards his membership of the DLG - Working Group as an opportunity to gain new experiences and discuss exciting issues concerning the agricultural industry. "My motivation for the chair is to experience more, to report more and to engage in intensive dialogue with colleagues from different countries", says Dr Alex Lissitsa.

Chairman Stefan Dürr added "The DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe brings together various agricultural industry actors from multiple Eastern European countries and establishes an independent platform for exchanging expert opinions. I look forward to working together with Dr Alex Lissitsa in chairing this committee. I regard this professional cooperation as a bridge for building trust and also for improving Russian-Ukrainian relations."


The DLG - Working Group Eastern Europe was set up to foster the exchange of expert knowledge between farmers, agribusiness representatives, consultants and scientists concerning issues of relevance to the countries of Eastern Europe. The LAK OE pursues professional objectives. For instance, the LAK OE acts as a professional voice via-à-vis ministries, professional associations and other organisations at home and abroad.

The LAK OE brings together actors from the worlds of farming, industry, politics, science and agribusiness. The Working Group currently consists of 14 members, including representatives from Belarus, Germany, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia and Ukraine. Depending on the topics being dealt with, the members work closely together with the specific DLG expert committees. LAK OE objectives and focal interests:

  • Establishment of a platform for international exchange on a professional basis
  • Knowledge generation and bundling of country information
  • Expansion and fortification of international networks
  • Cooperation with national networks in the Eastern European countries
  • Fostering international expert knowledge and technology transfer

Providing access to relevant persons, institutions and companies