General Assembly & Networking Event 2025
Programme Outline
04 September 2025
04 September General Assembly and Networking Event 2025
Urania Observatory, Vienna
Registration required
Free of charge for members
Networking event open for non-members from 12:45 // contribution fee € 145,- net
09:30 – 12:30 General Assembly
12:30 – 18:15 Networking Event
18:30 – 22:00 Networking dinner @ Restaurant Motto am Fluss
For registered participants only // contribution fee € 70,- net (for members and non-members)
Speakers & Panellists
at the Donau Soja Networking Event
Stephan Arens
Managing Director
Union Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants
Laurent Mercier
Market Officer for protein crops and plant-based protein
European Commission
Olena Sobko
Project Management and Contract Farming
Biovegio GmbH
Jovana Djisalov
Head of External Relations SEE
Donau Soja
Denys Miagkov
Head of Trading
TAS Agro Company
Verena Wiederkehr
Head of Plant-Based Business Development
Billa AG, Rewe Group
Jasmin Karer
Research & Innovation Manager
Donau Soja
Jegor Miladinović
Assistant Director for Science
Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops
Josef Willim
Managing Director
BAG Ölmühle GmbH
Matthias Krön
President
Donau Soja
Christoph Müller
Policy Director
Donau Soja
Donal Murphy-Bokern
Independent scientist
Mirjana Lalosevic
Agro Manager
Donau Soja
Laura Nobel
Manager
Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI)
Stephan Arens
Managing Director
Union Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants
Stephan Arens graduated as agricultural engineer, specialised in agricultural economics and agricultural policy. After several years as a specialist advisor for several commodities and feed management at Deutscher Raiffeisenverband in Bonn, he took over the development of a liaison office in Berlin. He was a parliamentary advisor for food, agriculture and consumer protection for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German Bundestag, before taking over the executive management of UFOP in 2012.
Jovana Djisalov
Head of External Relations SEE
Donau Soja
Jovana Djisalov has almost 20 years of experience supporting agrifood businesses in transitioning toward more sustainable practices while navigating evolving regulatory requirements. She holds a Ph.D. degree in Biotechnology from the Agriculture Faculty at the University in Novi Sad, Serbia.
Jasmin Karer
Research & Innovation Manager
Donau Soja
Jasmin Karer is a project manager at Donau Soja in the area of Research & Innovation. She acts as the interface between Donau Soja and the project partners and is responsible for successful communication and dissemination of the project outputs as well as establishing contacts with soybean farmers. She is also active in the field and assists with soil sampling.
Matthias Krön
President
Donau Soja
After his studies in Vienna, Taipei and New York, Matthias Krön started working in the dairy business and established Mona Naturprodukte, a major supplier for dairy alternatives based on soya, rice and oats in Austria. In 2011, he stepped down to focus on the founding of the Donau Soja Association. Since its establishment in 2012, he has served as its President, championing sustainable, regional protein supply in Europe. Matthias Krön is also CEO of The New Originals Company, now Europe’s leading tofu producer.
Mirjana Lalošević
Agro Manager
Donau Soja
Mirjana Lalošević is an Agriculture Manager responsible for the Southeastern Europe region, where she leads efforts to bring knowledge and innovation directly to the farming community. With a strong focus on sustainability and regenerative practices, Mirjana bridges the gap between cutting-edge agricultural solutions and the realities of the field.
Laurent Mercier
Market Officer for protein crops and plant-based protein
European Commission
Laurent Mercier joined the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development 30 years ago, bringing a background in law and computer science. He took on various roles, including overseeing wine geographical indications and working in the olive oil sector. Four years ago, he joined the Cereals team, where he focuses on plant protein policy.
Denys Miagkov
Head of Trading
TAS Agro Company
Denis Myagkov has over ten years of experience in grain and oilseed trading, working in key global markets through previous work experience at Syngenta, Agrofusion, Olam International and Nibulon. His expertise covers GAFTA/FOSFA contracts, working with derivatives, letters of credit, freight and comprehensive support of deals in various geographies.
Jegor Miladinović
Assistant Director for Science
Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops
Prof. Jegor Miladinović, Principal Research Fellow, holds a PhD in Plant Genetics and Breeding. He was appointed Professor in 2020 and completed the postdoctoral training in soybean breeding in the US and the P.R. China. He has authored or co-authored more than 300 research papers and has authored or co-authored 64 soybean cultivars registered in Serbia and 56 soybean cultivars released abroad.
Christoph Müller
Policy Director
Donau Soja
Christoph Müller studied Ecology and Nature Conservation and worked previously in the sustainability department of an international retailer. At Donau Soja, he is responsible for policy and sustainability topics, with a strong focus on Life-Cycle-Assessments and biodiversity.
Laura Nobel
Manager
Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI)
Laura Nobel is in charge of the overall management for the Global Feed LCA Institute, such as preparing key meetings and working groups like the Technical Management Committee and the Board of Directors, coordinating communication streams, drafting documentations, and developing and maintaining relevant partnerships. Her role also involves stimulating companies to prioritize sustainability through the LCA method, and finding synergies with relevant stakeholders.
Olena Sobko
Project Management and Contract Farming
Biovegio GmbH
Olena has been working with the queen of legumes since 2014 focusing on varieties, inoculation and plant protection trials as well as breeding and overseeing the entire seed production process. After completing her doctorate on soybean cultivation in Germany, she worked as a consultant, from soybean breeding and cultivation to processing. Since January 2025, she works as a project and contract cultivation manager for soy and other legumes at Biovegio GmbH.
Verena Wiederkehr
Head of Plant-Based Business Development
Billa AG, Rewe Group
Plant-based expert Verena Wiederkehr heads up business development for the purely plant-based product range in the category management team at BILLA, part of the REWE Group. Her role includes setting strategy, embedding knowledge about the plant-based market within the organisation and designing the purely plant-based product range. Previously, she worked for a plant-based manufacturer and for ProVeg International, where she proactively shaped the further development of the plant-based category in collaboration with retailers and manufacturers.
Josef Willim
Managing Director
BAG Ölmühle GmbH
Josef Willim is the CEO of BAG, one of the first oil mills in Central Europe which has been processing exclusively European soybeans for almost 15 years. BAG is a pioneer of the European protein strategy and founding member of Donau Soja, producing in the heart of the soybean growing region and committed to local, sustainable and independent supply chains.
Donal Murphy-Bokern
Independent scientist
Donal Murphy-Bokern is a general agricultural scientist and agricultural economist from Ireland, now living in Germany. He has 40 years’ experience conducting and leading research in agronomy, farming and food systems, and plant breeding. Much of his work has been conducted in a research policy and agricultural policy setting. He currently is the science coordinator of the Horizon Europe Legume Generation project and chairs the Donau Scientific Committee and the Legume Hub Community.
Moderation
Susanne Fromwald
General Secretary
Donau Soja
Sponsors
We thank our sponsors and exhibitors:
Sponsoring Opportunities
We cordially invite you to join us at the Donau Soja General Assembly and Networking Event 2025 at the Urania Sternwarte in Vienna. Both events are traditional meeting places for the Donau Soja members and the European soybean community to reconnect and to get informed on the developments in the soybean sector.
As a sponsor, you’ll be at the forefront of this vibrant community, gaining targeted exposure and access to key players in the soybean industry. Your support will not only contribute to the success of the event but also help advance sustainability and innovation in the soybean sector.
Notice: The General Assembly takes place in the morning and is open only for Donau Soja members. With the lunch break the subsequent Networking Event starts, which is a public event open to all interested participants.
Special wishes or ideas? Please let us know.
Contact:
Event secretariat event@donausoja.org
Location
Urania Observatory
Uraniastrasse 1
1010 Vienna