Agrofarm Knau

What Agrofarm Knau does

Agrofarm Knau eG is a registered agricultural cooperative (eingetragene Genossenschaft) headquartered in Knau, Neustadt an der Orla, Thuringia, Germany, with between 11 and 50 employees. Founded as a cooperative in 1993 and operating on land tied to a historic farm site that includes the Wassermühle Knau (a watermill first documented in 1682, acquired by the cooperative in 2007), the company runs a vertically integrated farm-to-table value chain. Its core production spans four linked units: Feldwirtschaft (field farming for cereal and specialty crops, including feed production on company-owned land), Viehwirtschaft (dairy cattle and pig husbandry, with over 95% of feed from own cultivation, no growth hormones, and S-quality milk), Fleischerei (in-house butchery producing fresh meat and sausages from own livestock), and Bäckerei (own bakery launched in 2020 baking stone-oven sourdough bread from regional grain milled at the Pöllwitzmühle and Ruhmühle Ebersdorf).

Distribution is anchored by the Hofladen (farm shop) in Knau and extended through 17 retail branches across 14 Thuringian towns, embedded in Kaufland, Penny, and Diska supermarket locations, plus standalone outlets. The cooperative also operates Gastronomie (a restaurant with daily lunch menus and a Sunday brunch in the Bauernstube), Partyservice (a 17-year-old catering arm serving events up to 500+ guests with equipment rental), and a tourism cluster at the Wassermühle Knau offering vacation apartments, double rooms, mill tours, and event venues (Mühlenscheune, Mühlenstube, Mühlenbackhaus). Pricing across the portfolio is unit-based per night or per visit, with no subscription, volume, or digital-channel model identified.

The cooperative is governed by a two-person Vorstand — Ralf Voit (Chairman, agricultural engineering background) and Michel Leudolph (direct marketing, master craftsman) — and is audited by Agrar Prüfung- und Beratungsverband e.V. It runs a vocational training program across 11 trades (farming, animal husbandry, butchery, baking, gastronomy, agricultural mechanics) with above-average compensation. Revenue figures are not publicly disclosed; the entity is privately held under German cooperative law with no parent company, subsidiaries, or external funding rounds.

Name

Agrofarm Knau

Legal name

Agrofarm Knau eG

Website

https://agrofarm-knau.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Agrofarm Knau eG is a Thuringian agricultural cooperative running a fully vertically integrated farm-to-table operation — own feed, livestock, butchery, and bakery — distributed through 17 retail branches, a farm shop, catering, and agritourism at the historic 1682 Wassermühle Knau, serving regional Thuringian consumers and event hosts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Food Production

NAICS

Hog and Pig Farming (11221), Cattle Ranching and Farming (1121), Oilseed and Grain Farming (1111)

SIC

Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200), Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

High-Health/Biosecure Hog Production (SPF/Pedigree Nucleus) (AFAEAEAL)

Keywords

• Meat processing
• Bakery products
• Agricultural cooperative
• Livestock farming
• Regional food retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Neustadt An Der Orla

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices16 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Agricultural Production & Direct Sales: The cooperative operates field crops (cereals, specialty crops) and livestock (dairy cattle, pigs) and processes everything in-house. Revenue comes from selling fresh meat, sausages, and baked goods through their own farm shop, multiple retail branches, and bakery outlets in Kaufland stores across Thuringia.
2. Bakery Products: Fresh breads, pastries, cakes, and festive items produced in their own Knau bakery and sold through their own stores and in supermarkets.
3. Restaurant & Catering: Daily lunch menu served across multiple locations, Sunday brunch in the Bauernstube, and comprehensive party/catering service for events up to 500+ people including equipment rental.
4. Accommodation & Tourism: Vacation apartments and rooms in the historic watermill (Wassermühle), mill tours, and event venue rentals in the Mühlenscheune, Mühlenstube, and Mühlenbackhaus.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Agrofarm Knau is a registered agricultural cooperative (eG) that runs field farming and livestock farming (dairy cattle and pigs) and processes the output in-house through its butchery (Fleischerei) and bakery (Bäckerei). It sells meat, sausage, and baked goods via its own farm shop and 17 retail branches in Thuringia, at Kaufland, Penny, and Diska, and operates catering, a restaurant, and overnight accommodation at the historic Wassermühle Knau.

Product overview

Agrofarm Knau eG is a vertically integrated agricultural cooperative operating a full farm-to-table supply chain. The core products are fresh meat and sausage products from their own livestock (processed in their Fleischerei/butchery) and freshly baked bread from their Bäckerei/bakery using regional grain. These are distributed through 16 retail branches across Thuringia. The company also operates the historic Wassermühle Knau (water mill) offering tourism services including mill tours, event celebrations (Mühlenscheune, Mühlenstube, Mühlenbackhaus), and accommodation. Additional services include Gastronomie/restaurant operations and Partyservice/catering. The business model integrates Feldwirtschaft/field farming (feed production), Viehwirtschaft/livestock farming (cattle and pigs), meat processing, and bakery production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fleischerei (Butchery)
• Bäckerei (Bakery)
• Partyservice (Catering)
• Gastronomie (Restaurant)
• Übernachtungen (Accommodation)
• Wassermühle Knau (Historic Water Mill Venue)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 95% of animal feed produced from the company's own cultivated land
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Agrar Prüfung- und Beratungsverband e.V. (Agricultural Audit and Advisory Association)minorOthersThe cooperative is registered in the Genossenschaftsregister (cooperative register, No. 155) and is audited by the Agrar Prüfung- und Beratungsverband e.V. based in Dresden. This is a required regulatory membership for agricultural cooperatives in Germany, providing formal audit and advisory services.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• DMK Deutsches Milchkontor eG: DMK is Germany's largest dairy cooperative, processing milk into a broad portfolio of dairy products across consumer and B2B channels. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau on the dairy farming side via cooperative structure and German retail focus, but operates at materially larger scale and broader geographic footprint.

Direct peers

• Bayernland eG: Bayernland eG is a Bavarian agricultural cooperative engaged in meat processing, sausage production, and direct marketing through farm shops and supermarket counters. Highly comparable to Agrofarm Knau in cooperative structure, multi-vertical model (farming → processing → retail), and regional German focus.
• Hochwald Foods GmbH: Hochwald is a German dairy cooperative processing milk into consumer dairy products with strong regional brand positioning. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau's dairy operations through a farmer-owned cooperative model and focus on quality-tier milk production for retail channels.
• Nordzucker AG: Nordzucker is a German sugar producer organized as a farmer-owned cooperative, processing sugar beets from member farms into consumer and industrial sugar. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau via the cooperative ownership structure and farm-to-finished-product vertical integration, though in a different commodity.
• Privat-Molkerei Bechtel: Bechtel is a regional German dairy producing fresh milk and dairy specialties, with focus on traditional processing and regional retail supply. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau on cooperative-style regional dairy operations and quality-tier milk positioning for direct retail and in-store counter distribution.
• Westfleisch SCE mbH: Westfleisch is one of Germany's largest meat producer cooperatives, operating slaughtering, butchery, and processed meat operations for retail and food service. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau on the meat-processing side through a cooperative-owned, vertically organized production model serving German retail.
• Privat-Molkerei Naarmann GmbH: Naarmann is a regional German dairy processor producing fresh milk and dairy specialties for retail and food service in North Rhine-Westphalia. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau on the dairy processing side, focused on regional fresh dairy supply rather than national brand scale.
• Müller Fleisch GmbH: Müller Fleisch is a German meat processor specializing in beef, pork, and sausage production for retail and food service. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau on meat processing capabilities and supplying processed meat products to German supermarket chains and regional retail.
• Bauerngut GmbH: Bauerngut is a meat-processing subsidiary of Edeka Minden-Hannover producing sausages and meat products sold through Edeka retail counters. Comparable to Agrofarm Knau in supplying fresh meat and sausage products to regional supermarket counters with a regional German focus.

Others

• tegut... gute Lebensmittel GmbH: tegut is a regional German grocer focused on natural and regional products, frequently hosting regional and farm-based suppliers in-store. Comparable as a regional Thuringia/Hessen-area channel that carries farm-direct products like those produced by Agrofarm Knau, though as a retailer rather than a producer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AgrofarmKnaueG
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/agrofarm-knau-eg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Agrofarm Knau