The Can Manufacturers Institute (CMI), the leading trade association representing the US metal can manufacturing industry and its suppliers, has announced that its longtime president, Robert Budway, will retire after nearly 40 years of dedicated service to the organization.
Scott Breen, who currently serves as CMI’s senior vice president of sustainability, will assume Budway’s leadership role. Breen’s appointment as CMI President was approved by the Board of Governors and takes effect on 9 June 2025. Budway will remain on staff as a transition advisor to Breen through the end of the year.
“This leadership transition is an exciting new chapter for the association,” said CMI chairman Thomas Fischer, vice president of investor relations and corporate affairs at Crown Holdings. “Robert has left an indelible mark on the metal can industry. We are grateful for his leadership and wish him well in retirement. Scott’s policy expertise and his collaborative approach to working on complex issues makes him best suited to guide CMI into the future.”
Budway joined CMI in 1986 and became CMI President after the passing of long-time president General J Michael Dunn in 1995. Under his leadership, Budway has grown CMI membership and overseen its public policy, and communications actions with a specific focus recently on sustainability, trade, and regulatory matters.
Prior to joining CMI, Budway served as a staffer on the US House Ways and Means Committee. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Boston University in international relations and history and received a Juris Doctor from the Northwestern School of Law at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. He is Chair of the Board of Trustees of his alma mater, the Hawaii Preparatory Academy.
“I will always cherish my work in this historic and distinguished U.S. manufacturing sector. I want to thank the dedicated CMI staff and our very dedicated members who make our industry a vital and essential leader in the food and beverage sector,” Budway said. “I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished, and I know Scott is the right person to carry the mission forward, navigating complex political, legislative, and communication landscapes and ensuring that our industry remains competitive within the global economy.”
Breen joined CMI in 2019 and has elevated the association’s vision for the metal can to be recognized as the superior, sustainable package. He is a sought-after speaker and coalition builder in the sustainability space and currently serves as the Board Chair of The Recycling Partnership.
At CMI, Breen has facilitated several new initiatives to advance the metal can industry’s sustainability performance, including advocacy for federal and state legislation, advancing regulation that reflects the metal can’s sustainability advantages, and working to develop CMI’s recycling primer and roadmap, which demonstrates how to accelerate aluminum beverage can recycling rates into the future.
“I want to thank Robert for his dedicated service to our industry. I am excited to lead, building on his pathway of success,” said Breen. “CMI’s bright future will be built around the collaboration of our talented members, staff, and partners to advance smart policy that furthers our industry’s growth into the future.”
Prior to joining CMI, Breen was the associate manager of the Sustainability and Circular Economy Program at the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation and an attorney-adviser at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. He also explored various aspects of sustainability as creator and co-host of the podcast Sustainability Defined. Breen graduated from Georgetown University and then went on to earn a Juris Doctor and Master of Public Affairs from Indiana University.
