Paul Graham, GB Managing Director at Britvic, has been appointed as the new President of the British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) trade body following election at its AGM.

Paul takes over from Nichols CEO Dr Marnie Millard OBE, who led a number of initiatives during her time as President, including the BSDA’s role as a founder-member of Circularity Scotland Ltd, a scheme administrator for Scotland’s deposit return scheme (DRS).

Paul joined Britvic in September 2012 having worked in a range of commercial roles across all trade channels for United Biscuits and Mars Confectionery. He was promoted to his current position in July 2013 and was appointed Vice President of the BSDA in 2020.

He said: “I am delighted to be elected as the new BSDA President. I aim to continue the outstanding work of Marnie and past presidents on making further significant progress on a wide range of soft drinks-related issues, not least helping our partners in the hospitality sector get back on their feet after an extremely challenging year.

“As a founder-member of Circularity Scotland, the BSDA continues to work closely with the Scottish Government to develop its DRS, which is currently due to be introduced in 2022, although we are eager to see the Scottish Government review this date to help ensure delivery of a well-designed DRS system in Scotland that works for consumers and businesses.”

William Watkins, Founder and Owner at Radnor Hills, has been elected to replace Paul as Vice President of the BSDA. William founded Radnor Hills in 1991 on his family farm based on the Welsh borders. The business now produces more than 350 million products per year.

The BSDA represents UK producers of soft drinks, including carbonated drinks, still and dilutable drinks, fruit juices and bottled waters. Membership includes the majority of Britain’s soft drinks manufacturers as well as franchisors, importers and suppliers to the UK soft drinks industry.