Lemken enjoyed record sales during its last financial year with total sales topping out just short of €600 million.
This represents a 25% boost and sets a record for the family owned company which has been trading for 243 years; there being few, if any, in the machinery sector that can boast such a legacy.
World market
Germany, its home market, accounts for 20% of the business, the rest is generated by European and international sales, which goes to confirm the latest industry report from CEMA which found the country is the world’s largest machinery exporter with total sales of €13.3 billion in 2021.
Lemken was also able to boast a 4.5% increase in staff levels throughout its worldwide operation, bringing the total to 1,773, and it intends to increase that figure further through recruitment in all parts of its business.
Another major contribution to the company’s success is to be made by the company’s acquisition of Equalizer, a South African specialist for precision seed drills with a focus on minimal tillage and no-till farming for large-scale farms.
Nicola Lemken, along with the company’s CEO, Anthony van der Ley, acknowledged that supply chain issues still dogged the company throughout 2022, yet at the same time conceded that farm incomes were such that farmers were able to continue investing in the latest machinery, despite increased input costs.
Lemken backs both horses
It was also noted that products such as the new Karat 10 cultivator and the company’s new plough models have also driven demand.
These two tools reflect both traditional cultivation systems and more modern methods where the emphasis is on single- or reduced-pass cultivations which do not disturb the soil to any great depth.
The fact that the plough is still valued by farmers suggests that min-till and direct drilling have a long way to go before achieving the dominance that their supporters think such methods deserve.
Income drives investment
Lemken is not resting on its laurels. It continues to invest in a new facility in Dinteloord, which manufactures implements for precision hoeing, and is expanding its Haren facility where it assembles seed drills.
The company is expecting that this growth will continue in 2023, basing this optimism on the high level of existing orders it has already received, while farmers are likely to benefit from the healthier returns from many of their products.
There is also an awareness that European agricultural policy and the expectation of additional regulation will create additional concerns for EU-based farmers, compared to international producers.