The European Commission launched today the updated Bioeconomy Strategy “A sustainable Bioeconomy for Europe. Strengthening the connection between economy, society and the environment”.
The purpose of this update to the 2012 Bioeconomy Strategy is to address global challenges like climate change, land and ecosystem degradation, through a set of 14 concrete actions which will be launched in 2019 at the latest. These actions reflect the conclusions of the 2017 review of the Strategy.
According to the European Commission, “A sustainable European bioeconomy supports the modernisation and strengthening of the EU industrial base through the creation of new value chains and greener, more cost-effective industrial processes. By capitalising on unprecedented advances in life sciences and biotechnologies, as well as innovations merging the physical, digital and biological worlds, the European industrial base can maintain and enhance its global leadership”.
The Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) welcomes the European Commission’s update to its Bioeconomy Strategy. “The communication of this update is timely, given the recent urgent call to action from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). We especially welcome the focus on scaling-up the bio-based sectors by supporting innovation and unlocking investments and markets, and deploying the bioeconomy across Europe”, BIC writes in a note.
“Research and innovation and the deployment of innovative solutions for the production of new and sustainable bio-based products (such as bio-chemicals, bio-fuels, etc.) will also enhance our capacity to substitute fossil raw materials in very significant parts of European industry (e.g. construction, packaging, textiles, chemicals, cosmetics, pharma ingredients, consumer goods) in line with the renewed Industrial Policy objectives.”
According to the projections of the industry (EuropaBio), the demand for industrial biotechnologies is expected to almost double within the next decade.
“A sustainable bioeconomy – the EC underlines – is the renewable segment of the circular economy. It can turn bio-waste, residues and discards into valuable resources and can create the innovations and incentives to help retailers and consumers cut food waste by 50% by 2030. For example, in the livestock sector innovations increasingly allow to safely turning certain food waste into feed for animals, provided the applicable rules and legal requirements are observed. It is estimated that the land – currently used to feed animals – that could be saved through these innovations could feed three billion additional people. Cities should become major circular bioeconomy hubs. Circular urban development plans could translate into very significant economic and environmental gains.”
IL BIOECONOMISTA 