(WW) – The British Indian businessman Ranjit Singh Baxi is the new president of the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR), having been elected to the post on 19 May at the organisation's annual spring convention. He succeeds Björn Grufman of the Swedish company Metallvärden, who led the BIR since 2011 and served the maximum two terms of office.
Mr Baxi is the founder and chairman of J & H Sales (International) Ltd., which is headquartered in Redbridge near London. The recovered paper trading company specialises in exports to Asia. The new president, a BIR member of many years’ standing, was the association's treasurer from 2011 until his election. According to its own account, the BIR's membership comprises 40 national organisations and more than 850 individual companies located in around 70 countries.
As president of the BIR, one of Mr Baxi's objectives is to achieve greater recognition of the recycling industry's contribution to climate protection, including in international negotiations on climate policy. In co-operation with the US Institute of the Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), the Bureau of Middle East Recycling (BMR) and other regional associations, Mr Baxi plans to promote a "World Recycling Day". Increasing the volumes and quality of recycled materials is another important concern for the new BIR president.
Mr Baxi was president of the BIR's recovered paper division from 2007 to 2011. His successor in this capacity, Reinhold Schmidt, was re-elected for a second two-year mandate last week. Mr Schmidt is managing partner of the German recovered paper and waste management company RKS-Recycling Karla Schmidt based in Haren. He is also a vice-president of the German recycling industry association bvse (Bundesverband Sekundärrohstoffe und Entsorgung) and the chairman of bvse's recovered paper division.
