NEWS RELEASES

 WASHINGTON – John B. Crowe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Buckeye Technologies Inc. of Memphis, TN, has been elected to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc.® (SFI®) independent Board of Directors.

“The SFI Board of Directors has three chambers so its members can represent the environmental, social and economic interests of our forests and communities fairly and equally, and John Crowe will bring a wealth of expertise to our economic chamber,” SFI President and CEO Kathy Abusow said today. “Buckeye is an innovative company with an eye on the future so John Crowe can help the SFI program explore the role forest certification will play in emerging issues such as changing ecosystems and growing markets for bioenergy.”

Buckeye manufactures and sells specialty fibers and nonwoven materials that are used by makers of consumer and industrial goods. Its pulp mill in Perry, FL, which is certified to the SFI fiber sourcing requirements, is part of a research project making bio-based chemicals from feedstock such as forest products that can be used for renewable energy, biodegradable forms of plastic, and much more.

“My involvement in the SFI program supports Buckeye’s commitment to provide unique fiber solutions that make everyday life better for consumers worldwide, and to do this in a way that protects the environment and resources for future generations,” Crowe said.

SFI Inc. is a registered charitable organization responsible for the largest single forest certification standard in the world. The SFI program works with a wide array of partners to improve forest management in the United States and Canada and sourcing worldwide. SFI board members include representatives of environmental, professional and academic groups, independent loggers, family forest landowners, public officials, labor and the forest products sector.

BACKGROUNDER: JOHN B. CROWE

John B. Crowe has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Buckeye Technologies Inc. since 2006. He joined Buckeye in 1997, and also served as President and Chief Operating Officer; as Senior Vice President, Wood Cellulose Division; and as Vice President, Wood Cellulose Manufacturing until January 2001. He was elected as a company director in August 2004.

Buckeye, with headquarters in Memphis TN, manufactures and sells specialty fibers and nonwoven materials. It operates facilities in the United States, Canada, Germany and Brazil, and its products are sold worldwide to makers of consumer and industrial goods. Its pulp mill in Perry, FL, is certified to the SFI fiber sourcing requirements.

A leader in biomass production, Buckeye is involved in a research and demonstration project with the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and Myriant Technologies at the company’s Perry, FL, cellulose mill. The plant will use cellulosic ethanol production technology to make bio-based chemicals with many potential applications, such as renewable energy and biodegradable forms of plastic. Cellulosic ethanol can be made from feedstock such as forest products, sugarcane and sugar processing byproducts.

Before joining Buckeye, Crowe was Executive Vice President/General Manager, Alabama River Pulp and Alabama Pine Pulp Operations, and Vice President and Site Manager, Flint River Operations, a subsidiary of Weyerhaeuser Company. From 1979 to 1992, he worked with Procter and Gamble.

Crowe chairs the Executive Committee and Board of Governors of the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI) and is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Forest & Paper Association. He also serves on the boards of the United Way of the Mid-South and the National Civil Rights Museum, and is a Director of Myers Industries Inc.

Crowe attended Florida State University on an athletic scholarship and earned a master’s degree in mathematics. Before starting his business career, he served in the United States Air Force as a Senior Pilot, retiring in 1997 with the rank of Lt. Colonel. Crowe and his wife, Betty, have two sons and two granddaughters, and live in Germantown, TN.

BACKGROUNDER: SFI INC. BOARD OF DIRECTORS 
March 2011 

Board members representing the environmental sector, which includes non-profit environmental or conservation organizations:

• Larry Selzer, (Vice-Chair) President and CEO, The Conservation Fund
• George Finney, President, Bird Studies Canada
• Tom Franklin, Senior Vice-President, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
• John M. Hagan III, President, Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences
• Roger Sedjo, Senior Fellow, Resources for the Future
• Mike Zagata, Executive Director and CEO, Ruffed Grouse Society
• Board members representing the social sector, which includes community or social interest groups such as universities, labor, family forest owners or government agencies:
• Mary Motlow, (Secretary-Treasurer) representing family forest landowners
• Richard W. (Dick) Brinker, Dean Emeritus, School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, Auburn University
• Stewart Hardacre, President and CEO, Habitat for Humanity Canada
• Steven W. Koehn, Director/State Forester, Maryland Department of Natural Resources
• Charles Tattersall (Tat) Smith Jr., Professor, Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto
• William V. (Bill) Street Jr., Director, Woodworkers Department, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
• Board members representing the economic sector, which includes the forest, paper and wood products industry or other for-profit forest ownership or management entities:
• Robert A. (Bob) Luoto (Chair), representing independent professional loggers and the American Loggers Council
• John B. Crowe, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Buckeye Technologies Inc.
• Matthew Donegan, Co-President, Forest Capital Partners LLC
• Daniel S. Fulton, President and CEO, Weyerhaeuser Company
• Rick R. Holley President & CEO, Plum Creek Timber Company Inc
• Henry H. (Hank) Ketcham, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.