The British Plastics Federation (BPF, London; www.bpf.co.uk) has a new president, namely former vice president Karen Drinkwater, who was recently elected to the position during the federation’s virtual annual general meeting.

Drinkwater joined the BPF in 2006 and was the chairperson of the BPF’s Rotational Moulders Group between 2011 and 2015. She succeeds Martin Althorpe, technical director at Epwin’s Fenestration division, who had held the role since 2019.

The agricultural economics graduate is a founding director of JSC Rotational and has been part of the plastics industry since establishing the company with her husband in 2004. About her new appointment, Drinkwater says, “When my husband and I founded our company, I was welcomed into the rotational moulding community, where everyone was really supportive whilst I built up my knowledge. Years later, it is an honour to be elected as president of the BPF. I hope my broad experience as a director of an SME can help keep the industry suitably focused during a time of unprecedented challenges. The plastics industry needs to keep highlighting how essential it is to society, how it is vital to so many industries, and how it plays a positive role in reducing carbon emissions as the UK strives to meet government-set emissions targets by 2035.”