Danish Crown Beef will lose its standalone CEO position from the start of next year, as Finn Klostermann steps down at the end of 2026 after 12 years leading the beef division and almost 20 years with the Danish meat group.

The move is part of a wider organisational overhaul announced by Danish Crown in June, which will integrate seven of the group's eight business units — Sokołów, Beef, Industry, Foods, KLS, UK and ESS-FOOD — into a shared organisation. The beef business will fall under a new global leadership team responsible for shared manufacturing, sales and product development.

Danish Crown Beef will remain a separate legal entity, retaining its existing ownership structure, owner services and profit distribution model. The group has approximately 3,700 cattle-owning cooperative members.

Why is Klostermann leaving now?

Klostermann said: "I have enjoyed being part of Danish Crown for almost 20 years. But Danish Crown is now on the threshold of a fundamental organisational transformation, and therefore it feels natural for me to step down at this point."

During his tenure, the beef business increased its focus on value-added processing and moved further up the value chain through investment in production, branding, business development and commercial execution. He also thanked Danish Crown's more than 3,000 cattle farmers for their support.

How has the beef division performed?

Group CEO Niels Ulrich Duedahl said: "Finn has been a driving force behind the development and strengthening of Danish Crown's beef division, which has more than doubled in size under his leadership."

Duedahl highlighted Klostermann's commercial expertise and his ability to identify opportunities to increase the value generated from cattle supplied by the cooperative's owners. His customer relationships formed a key part of that contribution — Duedahl pointed to Danish Crown's recently secured agreement with McDonald's as the latest example.

What happens next?

Danish Crown intends to use the scale and capabilities of its wider organisation to strengthen competitiveness, with greater emphasis on value-added processing, market focus, brands and cost efficiency. The group has already begun consolidating its corporate functions as part of the transformation.

Klostermann remains in post through the end of the year. The transition to the new structure is expected to take place over the next six months.