‘Bas Engelen Award’ for Caroline van der Plas
K.I. Samen has presented the second Bas Engelen Award to Dutch politician Caroline van der Plas. The award was handed to Caroline van der Plas by the Engelen family and the management of K.I. Samen during a specially organised meeting at the House of Representatives of the Netherlands. Caroline follows in the footsteps of farmer and breeder Jeroen van Maanen, who was the first to receive the Bas Engelen Award in November 2022.
Bas Engelen award
The Bas Engelen award was created to recognise individuals who champion the philosophy and vision of Bas Engelen – one of the founding fathers of K.I. Samen – and who represent and promote the interests of dairy farmers and rural communities. The award was created to celebrate the 40th anniversary of K.I. Samen and will be presented every two years.
Award winner Caroline van der Plas
Van der Plas has campaigned tirelessly for greater representation for the countryside. She has brought a voice for rural communities to the political arena in language that everyone can understand and states her position in clear and unambiguous terms. She has given farmers and citizens a voice that is heard in the seat of power and proved time and again that the countryside does matter. Caroline exemplifies the same ambitions that drove Bas Engelen: ‘standing up for the farmer’. Van der Plas was praised by K.I. Samen for her efforts to maintain a fair and sustainable countryside.
Caroline van der Plas is proud to have won this award and considers it a valuable recognition of her work. She was keen to emphasise the interest of farmers once again: “Before you can achieve anything, you sometimes have to undo things first. That takes patience and time. I will continue my work driven by my immense passion for farmers and citizens. I am extremely happy with the award, especially in these turbulent times.”
K.I. Samen hopes that Caroline van der Plas will continue her outstanding efforts and congratulates her on winning this very well-deserved award.
