20  I  SEED WORLD EUROPE  I  SEEDWORLD.COM/EUROPE | MAY 2026
INDEPENDENCE AS A STRATEGIC ASSET
KWS’s ability to take the long view is closely tied to its identity 
as a family company. The majority of the business remains in the 
hands of three families, with Felix Büchting representing the 
founding family in the seventh generation. This inde­
pendence provides the planning security needed to 
pursue initiatives that extend well beyond short 
term market cycles.
“I see myself as a trustee rather than 
an owner. This is not ‘my’ company — it 
was built by previous generations,” he says. 
“My responsibility is to pass KWS on to 
the next generation in a better state than 
I inherited it.”
A clear example of this mindset 
is the company’s entry into vegetable 
breeding in 2019. Establishing or expand­
ing breeding programs across nine crops 
required building an international network 
of breeding stations, scientific capabilities and 
talent pipelines.
“Long term decisions like entering vegeta­
ble breeding are based on a 20 year horizon,” Büchting 
explains. “It takes years before the first products reach the market, 
and building a competitive position requires sustained investment 
well beyond that.”
FROM KLEIN WANZLEBEN TO EINBECK
While continuity has been a defining feature of KWS’s success, the 
company’s history also includes moments of profound disruption. 
One of the most critical occurred at the end of the Second World 
War, when Klein Wanzleben was about to fall within the Soviet 
occupation zone.
An early KWS laboratory, where systematic breeding and seed 
evaluation began to scale alongside growing scientific capability.
In 1945, the British military transported members of the 
founding families, together with employees and approximately 
60 metric tons of elite seed, from Klein Wanzleben to Einbeck in 
a covert and highly sensitive operation. The operation secured 
the company’s critical breeding assets and enabled it to 
quickly resume its work. Einbeck has remained the 
company’s headquarters ever since.
TRUST EARNED OVER 
GENERATIONS
Throughout its history, KWS has built a 
reputation for delivering resilient, high 
yielding varieties across crops, regions, 
and growing conditions.
“What makes us successful is our 
ability to balance the long view with the 
flexibility to adapt,” Büchting says. “Just as 
plants respond to changing environments, 
companies must remain adaptable as 
well. That depends on staying closely 
connected to the realities farmers face 
every day.”
At KWS, this connection is 
anchored in longstanding relationships 
with agricultural communities. A net­
work of more than 700 seed partners across 
Europe alone supports customers with locally 
adapted varieties, agronomic expertise, and digital tools.
“Trust grows when products deliver what they promise,” 
Büchting adds. “Our business is built on the confidence farmers 
place in our seeds and our expertise, today, and for generations to 
come.”  
Early field selection and cultivation work in Klein Wanzleben, where KWS’s 
first breeding efforts took shape through hands-on observation and 
refinement.
Below: KWS headquarters in Einbeck, Germany — the 
company’s home since its relocation in 1945.
A modern 
interpretation of 
KWS’s 170-year 
legacy, linking 
generations of plant 
breeding to the 
future of agriculture.

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