German Lime Industry Association

The Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie e. V. (BVK), or German Lime Industry Association, is the nationwide trade association of the German lime industry, headquartered in Cologne. According to the association, it represents around 50 companies at more than 80 locations, which in 2024 produced roughly six million tonnes of quicklime with almost 3,000 employees and generated turnover of about one billion euros. The BVK is a registered association (eingetragener Verein) rather than a commercial company, and it functions as the collective voice of an energy-intensive basic-materials sector. The association traces its origins to 1892, when the lime section separated from the German association for the manufacture of bricks, clay wares, lime and cement founded in 1865. In 1908 this became the independent Verein Deutscher Kalkwerke. Under the National Socialist reorganization of the economic association system, the industry representation was incorporated in 1934 as the Fachgruppe Kalkindustrie within the Wirtschaftsgruppe Steine und Erden of the Reichsgruppe Industrie. After the Second World War, separate lime-industry associations formed in the western occupation zones; in the British zone the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. was established in Goslar in 1946, and from 1948 these organizations cooperated in the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Kalkindustrie. At a members' meeting on 23 June 1953 in Bad Homburg the foundations were laid for a joint nationwide association, and with entry in the register of associations on 22 September 1953 the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. was renamed Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie e. V. The BVK is active nationwide and represents the interests of the German lime industry especially in energy, climate, environmental and raw-material questions. It takes part in association consultations on legislative procedures and submits statements to federal ministries and members of the Bundestag. It has participated, among other things, in deliberations on the implementation of the revised EU Industrial Emissions Directive into German law and in 2026 in the association consultation on the law to accelerate the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive. Since 25 February 2022 the association has been listed in the Lobby Register of the German Bundestag and pursues regulatory projects including the storage and transport of carbon dioxide, the European emissions trading system, the industrial electricity price and the acceleration of permitting procedures for raw-material extraction. The BVK also collects plant-specific production data of the German lime industry; the German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt) uses these data as activity data for emission calculations for lime production in the German Informative Inventory Report, and according to the Environment Agency the BVK provides the production data for the entire time series recorded there. The BVK is led by a board. Burkhard Naffin has been chairman since June 2026; the deputy chairpersons are Alexia Spieler and Kai Schaefer. Martin Ogilvie is chief executive (Hauptgeschäftsführer). The association's technical work is organized in committees for climate and energy, technology, law and environment, lime, work design and business organization, and communication. Topic-specific working groups with industry experts are assigned to some of the committees; they deal with technical questions and prepare decision-making bases for the board. Kalkverband Agrar is a separate specialist department of the BVK for the agricultural and forestry use of lime. Also organizationally connected with the association are the legally independent Institut für Kalk- und Mörtelforschung e. V. (IKM) and the Forschungsgemeinschaft der Kalkindustrie e. V. (FG); BVK members are simultaneously members of these two associations.

The independent representation of interests of the German lime industry emerged in 1892, when the lime section (Sektion Kalk) separated from the "Deutscher Verein für Fabrication von Ziegeln, Tohnwaaren, Kalk und Cement" founded in 1865. In 1908 the independent Verein Deutscher Kalkwerke arose from this. In the course of the reorganization of the economic association system by the National Socialist regime, the industry representation was incorporated in 1934 as the Fachgruppe Kalkindustrie into the Wirtschaftsgruppe Steine und Erden within the Reichsgruppe Industrie. After the Second World War, independent associations of the lime industry initially formed in the western occupation zones. In the British occupation zone, the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. was established in Goslar in 1946. From 1948 these organizations worked together in the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Kalkindustrie. At a members' meeting on 23 June 1953 in Bad Homburg, the conditions were created for a joint nationwide association organization. With entry in the register of associations on 22 September 1953, the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. was renamed Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie e. V. The BVK is active nationwide and represents the interests of the German lime industry especially in energy, climate, environmental and raw-material questions. It participates in association consultations on legislative procedures and transmits statements to federal ministries and members of the German Bundestag. It took part, among other things, in the deliberations on the implementation of the revised EU Industrial Emissions Directive into German law and in 2026 in the association consultation on the law to accelerate the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive. Since 25 February 2022 the association has been listed in the Lobby Register of the German Bundestag and pursues, among other things, regulatory projects on the storage and transport of carbon dioxide, on European emissions trading, on the industrial electricity price and on the acceleration of permitting procedures for raw-material extraction. In addition, the BVK collects plant-specific production data of the German lime industry. The Umweltbundesamt uses these data as activity data for emission calculation for lime production in the German Informative Inventory Report; according to the Umweltbundesamt, the BVK provides the production data for the entire time series recorded there. The BVK is led by a board. Burkhard Naffin has been chairman since June 2026; the deputy chairpersons are Alexia Spieler and Kai Schaefer. The chief executive is Martin Ogilvie. The association's technical work is organized in committees for climate and energy, technology, law and environment, lime, work design and business organization, and communication. Topic-specific working groups with industry experts are assigned to some of the committees. They deal with technical questions and prepare decision-making bases for the board. Kalkverband Agrar is an independent specialist department of the BVK for the agricultural and forestry use of lime. Also organizationally connected with the association are the legally independent Institut für Kalk- und Mörtelforschung e. V. (IKM) and the Forschungsgemeinschaft der Kalkindustrie e. V. (FG); the members of the BVK are simultaneously members of these two associations. The legally independent Institut für Kalk- und Mörtelforschung e. V. (IKM) is the BVK's testing institute and examines, among other things, building materials, binders, mortars, stone meals and fertilizer limes for their physical and chemical composition and properties. Also independent is the Forschungsgemeinschaft der Kalkindustrie e. V. (FG), which together with universities, research institutes and industry partners conducts various research projects on, among other things, CO₂ reduction, carbonation, circular economy and energy efficiency. The Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie is a member of the European Lime Association (EuLA) and the International Lime Association (ILA). According to the lobby register, the association is also a member of the Bundesverband Baustoffe – Steine und Erden, the Energiedialog 2050, the Verband Energieintensive Industrien Deutschland (EID), DIN e. V., as well as the Wirtschaftsforum der SPD, the Wirtschaftsrat der CDU and the Wirtschaftsvereinigung der Grünen.

• 2026

  Burkhard Naffin becomes chairman in June; the association participates in the association consultation on the law to accelerate the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive.

• 2024

  According to the association, its member companies produce around six million tonnes of quicklime with almost 3,000 employees and turnover of about one billion euros.

• 2022

  The association is listed in the Lobby Register of the German Bundestag on 25 February.

• 1953

  At a members' meeting on 23 June in Bad Homburg the foundations are laid for a joint nationwide association; with entry in the register of associations on 22 September, the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. is renamed Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie e. V.

• 1948

  The separate lime-industry organizations begin working together in the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Kalkindustrie.

• 1946

  In the British occupation zone, the Fachverband Kalkindustrie e. V. is established in Goslar.

• 1934

  Under the National Socialist reorganization of the economic association system, the industry representation is incorporated as the Fachgruppe Kalkindustrie into the Wirtschaftsgruppe Steine und Erden within the Reichsgruppe Industrie.

• 1908

  The independent Verein Deutscher Kalkwerke emerges.

• 1892

  The lime section separates from the German association for the manufacture of bricks, clay wares, lime and cement founded in 1865, creating an independent representation of the German lime industry.

Nationwide trade association and policy voice for Germany's lime industry, focused on energy, climate, environmental and raw-material issues.

• Industry representation and lobbying

  Representation of the German lime industry in energy, climate, environmental and raw-material policy, including participation in association consultations and statements to federal ministries and Bundestag members.

• Plant-specific production data collection

  The BVK collects plant-specific production data of the German lime industry, used by the Umweltbundesamt as activity data for emission calculation in the German Informative Inventory Report.

• Kalkverband Agrar

  An independent specialist department of the BVK for the agricultural and forestry use of lime.

• Institut für Kalk- und Mörtelforschung e. V. (IKM)

  The legally independent testing institute of the BVK, examining building materials, binders, mortars, stone meals and fertilizer limes for their physical and chemical composition and properties.

• Forschungsgemeinschaft der Kalkindustrie e. V. (FG)

  A legally independent research association conducting projects with universities, research institutes and industry partners on CO₂ reduction, carbonation, circular economy and energy efficiency.

1. 1Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie – Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Bundesverband der Deutschen Kalkindustrie – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
3. 3Website des Bundesverbandes der Deutschen Kalkindustriekalk.de