Matthias Groote is a German politician and has been a Member of the European Parliament since October 2005. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, which is a part of the Socialist Group in the European Parliament. He is the current chairman of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and the delegation for relations with Japan. He is a substitute on the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy and the delegation for relations with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Matthias Groote was born on 21 October 1973 in Leer and went to secondary school in Westrhauderfehn, taking the leaving exam in 1990. He became an industrial engineer in 1995 and worked on plant design. In 1995 and 1996 he ran an alternate public service with the German Red Cross. He was a technical engineer in 1999, became a qualified industrial engineer in 2005, and also became a sales engineer in 2005. Matthias Groote has been a member of the Ostrhauderfehn local council since 1996, a member of the Leer district council since 2001, and the chair of the Ostrhauderfehn SPD council group since 2001. 

October 21st, 1973 in Leer (Age 50)