About Stefan Klebert
Stefan Klebert, CEO of GEA Group, has emphasized the company’s commitment to sustainability. In a March 2025 appearance, Klebert said that GEA has set targets to achieve climate neutrality by 2040, with a goal of reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 60% from a 2019 baseline by 2026, and that the company was at a 58% reduction as of the time of his remarks. He stated that Scope 1, 2, and 3 emission reduction targets are included in executive board compensation, which he said he believed to be unique among German companies. He also noted that 98.4% of shareholders approved the company’s climate plan at the annual general meeting. Klebert said the company views sustainability as an obligation, not just a growth strategy.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Klebert said GEA’s business in food, beverage, and pharmaceutical machinery would remain in demand regardless of the crisis, telling investors that “people need to eat and drink.” He expressed optimism about long-term trends in food production, citing population growth and urbanization. Klebert also said GEA works with customers on food safety, traceability, and energy efficiency, and described sustainability efforts as “a journey rather than a destination.” In earlier Davos interviews, he described GEA as a technology supplier focused on collaboration and reliability rather than low cost.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Stefan Klebert's recent appearances.
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Transcript (13 segments)
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Host0:00
Here at the Speakers Corner is Stefan Klebert. He is the CEO of GEA Group, a publicly traded industrial conglomerate from Düsseldorf. His talk here at the MMK is titled 'ST on Climate: How GEA is doing pioneering work for more climate protection'. We'll definitely talk about that because you are very active in that area. I'm glad you're here and that we can talk. How does it feel to be back at the university? What spirit, what student spirit do you experience here? It's always nice.
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Stefan Klebert0:40
I'm not here for the first time. We as a company are always present, and it's nice to be here. It's an inspiring environment with many highly qualified speakers and many exciting topics in a broad portfolio. That's why I always enjoy being here because you can always learn from others. We were just talking about it: GEA Group manufactures machines for the pharmaceutical, food, and beverage industries. And they are very important because without them there would probably be no Oreo cookies, no Innocent smoothies, no yogurts, and not to forget here in Bavaria, without us there would be no beer. Every second liter of beer worldwide is made with our breweries and systems, every third liter of milk. So we are indispensable in the food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industries. It is almost impossible to survive a week without consuming something from our customers.
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Host1:45
Now I can imagine that a system or a machine for an Oreo cookie has to look very different than for beer or milk. That means they produce many different types of machines.
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Stefan Klebert1:57
Exactly, exactly. We are actually a conglomerate of many mid-sized companies. So we start on the farm: we have milking machines. There is a standard in Germany that does that. Then you go 40 km further, there is another standard where the separators are made. Then you go to Italy near Venice, we make the pasta machines. 50 km further, we make the bakery machines. And 100 km further in Italy, we make the apple machines, for example. So it's a conglomerate of many dynamically acting companies that belong together in this group.
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Host2:33
In all of this, you always think about climate protection. You are doing pioneering work in that regard. In what way? I should ask, how much time do you have? 19 minutes? But we can manage.
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Stefan Klebert2:44
So we have clearly committed to the topic of sustainability. As a company, we want not only to grow and improve our results regularly, but also to make an impact for society in many ways. We believe we have an obligation to operate sustainably, and it runs through many things. For example, we have been driving only electric cars for years, our executives do. We have Scope 1, 2, and 3 reduction in board compensation. To my knowledge, there is no other company in Germany that includes all three scopes. We run very extensive programs, we invest a lot. We were the first company in the entire DAX index segment to go to the annual general meeting with a climate plan, for the climate target, and we received 98.4% approval from our shareholders to continue on this path.
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Host3:38
Now you may also mention that you have been awarded for this climate protection work, for this pioneering work. That means the topic is probably also close to your heart personally.
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Stefan Klebert3:47
Yes, it can't be any other way. As CEO, you have to stand behind such a topic. We have a fantastic team that implements and drives all these things. But if a CEO doesn't want it or doesn't stand behind it, then it naturally doesn't work. But the work is done by many very good people in our company, and that is nice.
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Host4:11
Now GEA Group is listed in the MDAX. How is the topic of climate protection received by shareholders? That is always an issue because climate protection is also associated with costs and effort.
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Stefan Klebert4:21
Exactly, so it's very well received. As I said, we were the first and only company at the annual general meeting. 98.4% of shareholders said yes, do that. We also said what it costs, we also said what we have to do until 2040 to be climate neutral. So we have full support from our shareholders. 98.4% is more than you could expect.
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Host4:46
And what is your goal? Where do you want to go next?
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Stefan Klebert4:50
To net zero, of course. In 2040 we want to be completely climate neutral. We have set ourselves the goal for Scope 1 and 2 to be minus 60% next year compared to the base year 2019, and we are currently at minus 58 percent. So it's not just that we have ambitious goals, we are also walking the path and doing a lot to achieve this goal.
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Host5:13
And then we wish you all the best. Thank you very much, thank you, thank you.
