COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Accompanying the document COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS A sustainable Bioeconomy for Europe: Strengthening the connection between economy, society and the environment
Date: 2018-10-11
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission
Subjects: Joint Research Centre, biomass, circular economy, climate change, common agricultural policy, ecosystem, innovation, reduction of gas emissions, sustainable development, waste management

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 11.10.2018  SWD(2018) 431 final  COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT Accompanying the document COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS  A sustainable Bioeconomy for Europe:  Strengthening the connection between economy, society and the environment {COM(2018) 673 final}  
 
 
Table of Contents 

1  Aim of the Staff Working Document ......................................................................3 

2  State of the EU Bioeconomy ..................................................................................3 

2.1. 

The European Bioeconomy Strategy ........................................................................................... 3 

2.2. 

The EU Bioeconomy ................................................................................................................... 9 

2.2.1.

Ecosystems and their services ................................................................................................. 16 

2.2.2.

Primary sectors and biomass flows ......................................................................................... 17 

2.2.3.

Oceans and the Blue Bioeconomy ........................................................................................... 21 

2.2.4.

Bio-based sectors .................................................................................................................... 23 

2.2.5.

Food systems ........................................................................................................................... 27 

2.2.6.

Bioenergy ................................................................................................................................. 30 

The Bioeconomy and Circular Economy: Adding value to bio-waste, by-products and resource 

2.3. 
flows  31 

3  Action Plan: Leading the way towards a sustainable, circular bioeconomy ........ 34 

3.1. 

Strengthen and scale-up the bio-based sectors, unlock investments and markets .................... 36 

3.1.1.
  Mobilise public and private stakeholders, in research, demonstration and deployment of 
sustainable, inclusive and circular bio-based solutions .......................................................................... 40 

3.1.2.

Launch of the EUR 100 million Circular Bioeconomy Thematic Investment Platform ............ 42 

3.1.3.
Study and analysis of enablers and bottlenecks and provide voluntary guidance to the 
deployment of bio-based innovations..................................................................................................... 43 

Promote and/or develop standards and emerging market-based incentives, and improve 

3.1.4.
labels applicable to bio-based products on the basis of reliable and comparable data on environmental 
and climate performance ........................................................................................................................ 44 

3.1.5.
Facilitate the development of new sustainable biorefineries and confirm the type and 
estimated potential ................................................................................................................................. 46 

Research and innovation investments for the development of substitutes to fossil based 

3.1.6.
materials that are bio-based, recyclable and marine-biodegradable, and of bio-remediation methods 
by mobilising the key actors in the relevant value chains including the plastics value chain and to 
contribute to plastic-free, healthy and productive European seas and oceans ..................................... 48 

3.2.  Deploy local bioeconomies rapidly across Europe .................................................................... 49 

A Strategic Deployment Agenda for sustainable food and farming systems, forestry and bio-

3.2.1.
based production in a circular bioeconomy ............................................................................................ 51 

3.2.2.
Pilot actions to support local bioeconomy development (rural, coastal, urban) via 
Commission instruments and programmes ............................................................................................ 52 

Set up an EU Bioeconomy policy support facility and a European Bioeconomy Forum for 

3.2.3.
Member States ........................................................................................................................................ 60 

3.2.4.

Promote education, training and skills across the bioeconomy ............................................. 65 

1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3.3.  Understand the ecological boundaries of the bioeconomy ....................................................... 67 

Enhance the knowledge on the bioeconomy, including on biodiversity and ecosystems to 

3.3.1.
deploy it within safe ecological limits, and make it accessible through the Knowledge Centre for 
Bioeconomy ............................................................................................................................................. 69 

Increase observation, measurement, monitoring and reporting capabilities and build an EU-

3.3.2.
wide, internationally coherent monitoring system to track economic, environmental and social 
progress towards a sustainable bioeconomy .......................................................................................... 74 

3.3.3.

Provide voluntary guidance to operate the bioeconomy within safe ecological limits .......... 76 

Better integrate the benefits of biodiversity-rich ecosystems in primary production through a 

3.3.4.
specific support to agro-ecology, the development of microbiome-based solutions, and new tools to 
integrate pollinators in supply value chains ............................................................................................ 77 

2 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1  AIM OF THE STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

The  present  Staff  Working  Document  accompanies  the  Communication  from  the  European 
Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the 
Committee  of  Regions  on  “A  sustainable  Bioeconomy  for  Europe:  Strengthening  the  connection 
between  economy,  society  and  the  environment”  (hereafter,  also  the  “Communication”).  The 
Communication  presents  an  update  of  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  Action  Plan 
(hereafter, also the “Strategy”), which aim to drive the vision of a full deployment of a sustainable 
and  circular  European  bioeconomy.  In  doing  so,  the  Strategy  aims  to  strengthen  the  connections 
between economy, society and the environment, thus maximising the contribution of a sustainable 
bioeconomy to the Commission priorities and to numerous of its policy objectives. These include in 
particular,  the  renewed  Industrial  Policy,1  the  Circular  Economy,2  and  the  Clean  Energy  for  All 
Europeans Package,3 all of which stress the need of a sustainable, circular bioeconomy to achieve 
their  objectives.  A  sustainable  bioeconomy  will  also  underpin  the  objectives  of  the  renewed 
Common Agricultural Policy and Common Fisheries Policy, as well as those of the Action Plan on 
Nature,  People  and  the  Economy,  the  EU  Forest  Strategy,  Biodiversity  Strategy,  Plastic  Strategy, 
and  Soil  Thematic  Strategy  (see  2.1).  Delivering  on  all  of  the  above  objectives  and  policies  will 
further  accelerate  the  contributions  of  the  EU  bioeconomy  towards  the  2030  Agenda  and  its 
Sustainable  Development  Goals,  to  the  EU’s  commitments  under  the  Paris  Agreement  and  to  the 
targets of the 2030 Climate and Energy Framework.4  

In  Section  2,  the  Staff  Working  Document  presents  the  background  information,  and  supporting 
data,  related  to  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  the  current  state  of  the  bioeconomy  in 
Europe. Section 3 of the Staff Working Document further details the background to, and expected 
impact of, the actions proposed in the Communication’s Action Plan. 

2  STATE OF THE EU BIOECONOMY 

2.1.  The European Bioeconomy Strategy 

The  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  its  Action  Plan5  emerged  in  2012  from  the  Innovation 
Union6 and Resource Efficient Europe7 flagship initiatives of the EU 2020 strategy, recognising that 
the bioeconomy, currently worth EUR 2.3 trillion in turnover and accounting for 8.2% of the EU's 
workforce,8  plays  a  central  role  in  addressing  a  number  of  key  interlinked  challenges.  The 
importance of this Strategy for Europe and its institutions, for the EU Member States and for their 

1 COM(2017)47, Investing in a smart, innovative and sustainable Industry A renewed EU Industrial Policy Strategy, 13.09.2017 

2 COM(2015)614, Closing the loop – An EU action plan for the circular economy, 02.12.2015 

3 COM(2016)860, Clean Energy for All Europeans – unlocking Europe's growth potential, 30.11.2016 

4 Regulation (EU) 2018/841 and Regulation (EU) 2018/842  

5 COM(2012)60, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A52012DC0060; SWD(2012)0011 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2012:0011:FIN 

6 COM(2010)0546, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52010DC0546  

7 COM(2011)0571, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=COM:2011:0571:FIN:EN:PDF 

8 Ronzon, T. et al., Sustainability, 10, 6, 1745, (2018), doi: 10.3390/su10061745. 

3 

 
 
                                                            
regions  has  been  reiterated  in  several  occasions.9  The  2012  Strategy aimed  to  “pave  the  way  to  a 
more  innovative,  resource  efficient  and  competitive  society  that  reconciles  food  security  with  the 
sustainable  use  of  renewable  resources  for  industrial  purposes,  while  ensuring  environmental 
protection”.  The  2012  Strategy  highlighted  that  the  bioeconomy's  cross-cutting  nature  offers  a 
unique opportunity  to comprehensively  address  inter-connected societal challenges, and  identified 
five  objectives  to  which  the  Strategy  and  its  Action  Plan  were  to  contribute:  (1)  ensuring  food 
security,  (2)  managing  natural  resources  sustainably,  (3)  reducing  dependence  on  non-renewable 
resources, (4) mitigating and adapting to climate change, and (5) creating jobs and maintaining EU 
competitiveness. 

In  2017,  a  Review  of  the  Bioeconomy  Strategy10  (hereafter,  also  the  “Review”)  was  carried  out, 
with  the  support  of  independent  external  experts.11  The  Review  concluded  that  the  European 
Bioeconomy Strategy has substantially delivered during the past years on its objectives, through a 
wide array of actions ranging from the EU Framework Programmes for Research and Innovation, to 
the launching of the Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking (BBI JU)12 leading to the creation of 
new  bio-based  value  chains,  to  the  development  of  several  national  bioeconomy  strategies,  of 
dedicated  regional  platforms  and  of  stakeholder  panels,  all  promoting  the  development  of  local 
bioeconomies  valuing  local  resources  and  adapted  to  local  needs.  In  particular,  the  Strategy 
succeeded  in  mobilising  Research  and  Innovation  funding  in  bioeconomy  by  a)  doubling  the  EU 
Research and Innovation funding dedicated to the bioeconomy under Horizon 2020, b) increasing 
support to private investment and public-private partnerships through the launch of the BBI JU, and 
c)  encouraging  Research  and  Innovation  investments  in  the  Member  States.  Also,  one  of  the  key 
results  of  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  has  been  to  bring  the  bioeconomy  principles  and 
cross-cutting objectives to the attention of national and regional policy-makers, as demonstrated by 
the number of countries that have adopted bioeconomy policies since 2012.13 A substantial number 
of  European  regions  have  also  included  bioeconomy-related  priorities  in  their  Research  and 
Innovation Strategies for Smart Specialisation.14 The importance of regional bioeconomy strategies, 
of rural renaissance and of sustainably managing natural resources, is also one of the points of the 
Bioeconomy  Stakeholder  Manifesto,  which  has  been  another  significant  achievement  of  the  2012 
Strategy.15  

9 P7_TA(2013)0302, http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+P7-TA-2013-0302+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN; REPORT on cohesion policy and 

the circular economy (2017/2211(INI)); EUR-Lex - 52012AR1112 – EN (2013/C 17/09); https://cor.europa.eu/en/news/Pages/Towards-a-knowledge-based-

bioeconomy.aspx; 

https://dm.eesc.europa.eu/EESCDocumentSearch/Pages/redresults.aspx?LANG=EN&k=(documentsource:EESC)(dossiername:NAT)(dossiernumber:739)(document

language:EN); 

https://dm.eesc.europa.eu/EESCDocumentSearch/Pages/redresults.aspx?LANG=EN&k=(documentsource:EESC)(dossiername:CCMI)(dossiernumber:160)(documen

tlanguage:EN) 

10 SWD(2017)374; ISBN 978-92-79-74382-5; https://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/review_of_2012_eu_bes.pdf 

11 https://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/publications/bioeconomy_expert_group_report.pdf 

12 https://www.bbi-europe.eu/ 

13 https://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/review_of_2012_eu_bes.pdf 

14 https://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/publications/bioeconomy_development_in_eu_regions.pdf 

15 http://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/european_bioeconomy_stakeholders_manifesto.pdf 

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Notwithstanding  its  positive  outcome,  the  Review  also  identified  several  areas  for  further 
improvement of the Strategy and Action Plan, namely the need for: 

a)  further mobilisation of investments, including from the private sector; 

b) increased predictability of the regulatory environment to facilitate further investments; 

c)  increased coherence among relevant EU policies; 

d) increased involvement of Member States, regions and cities; 

e)  inclusion of fewer, focused actions to deliver on a circular bioeconomy; 

f)  better monitoring of progress of the bioeconomy as a whole and of the Strategy itself, including 

appropriate indicators; 

g) updated alignment to recent EU and global policy developments. 

In terms of the latter point, the Review concluded that “…The current policy context highlights the 
need for a sustainable, circular bioeconomy. The policy context in which the bioeconomy operates 
has  changed  significantly  since  2012,  with  EU  and  global  policy  developments  such  as  the  EU 
Circular Economy, the EU Energy Union, the Paris Climate Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for 
Sustainable  Development.  In  consequence,  the  concept  of  a  sustainable,  circular  bioeconomy  is 
being proposed by various stakeholders. The scope of the 2012 Strategy and Action Plan and the 
relevance  and  focus  of  its  objectives  and  actions  have  to  be  looked  at  in  light  of  these 
developments." 

Achieving sustainability is at the heart of the Commission's political priorities,16 it depends upon the 
renewal of our industries, economies and energy systems, and as such it is central to EU policies 
related  to  different  parts  of  the  bioeconomy,  such  as  the  legislative  proposals  on  the  common 
agricultural policy (CAP),17 the Strategic Approach to EU Agricultural Research and Innovation18, 
the ongoing implementation of the EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy19 and the new waste 
legislation,20  FOOD  2030  Research  and  Innovation  work  stream,21  the  renewed  EU  Industrial 
Policy Strategy,22 the Commission Work Programme for 2018-2020,23 the EU Communication on 
Accelerating  Clean  Energy  Innovation,24  the  Energy  Union  Framework  Strategy25  including  the 
Renewable Energy Directive,26 the Convention on Biological Diversity  27 and the EU Biodiversity 

16 COM(2016)739 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/DE/ALL/?uri=COM%3A2016%3A739%3AFIN  

17 COM/2018/392 final; COM/2018/393 final; COM/2018/394 final/2 

18 https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/news/final-paper-strategic-approach-eu-agricultural-research-and-innovation 

19 COM(2015)0614, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52015DC0614 

20 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/legislation/ 

21 SWD(2016)319, http://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/10102/2016/EN/SWD-2016-319-F1-EN-MAIN.PDF  

22 COM(2017)0479 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52017DC0479 

23 https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/2018-commission-work-programme-key-documents_en  

24 COM(2016)0763 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52016DC0763 

25 COM(2015)080 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2015:80:FIN 

26 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:02009L0028-20151005&from=EN 

27 https://www.cbd.int/ 

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Strategy,28 the Common Fisheries Policy,29 the EU Forest Strategy,30 the Blueprint for EU Forest-
based  Industries31,  the  Blue  Growth  Strategy,32  the  European  Commission  Communication  on 
International Ocean Governance33 and the EU Action Plan for Nature, People and the Economy34 
(Table 1).  

Strategies relevant to the bioeconomy 

Bioeconomy specific 

Sectors mainly supplying biomass 

Agriculture 

Forest-based sector 

Fisheries, aquaculture and algae 

Waste 

Sectors mainly using biomass 

Food and nutrition security 

Energy 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Commission  communication  ‘Innovating  for  sustainable  growth:  a  bioeconomy  for  Europe’  (EC 
2012a) 

Commission  communications:  legislative  proposals  on  the  common  agricultural  policy  (CAP) 
beyond 2020 (COM/2018/392 final; COM/2018/393 final; COM/2018/394 final/2)  

Commission communication ‘Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection’ (SEC(2006)620) 

Commission  communication  ‘A  new  EU  forest  strategy:  for  forests  and  the  forest-based  sector’ 
(EC 2013a) 

Commission  staff  working  document  ‘Multiannual  implementation  plan  of  the  new  EU  forest 
strategy’ (EC 2015a) 
Blueprint for the EU Forest-based Industries (SWD(2013)343) 

The Common Fisheries Basic Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 
Commission  communication  ‘Blue  growth:  opportunities  for  marine  and  maritime  growth’  (EC 
2012e)  
Report  on  the  Blue  Growth  Strategy,  Towards  more  sustainable  growth  and  jobs  in  the  blue 
economy, SWD (2017) 128 final 
Commission  communication  ‘Strategic  guidelines  for  the  sustainable  development  of  EU 
aquaculture’ (EC 2013e) 
Joint communication “International ocean governance agenda for the future of our  oceans” (EC 
2016) 

See cross-cutting policies (below) 

Commission communication ‘An EU policy framework to assist developing countries in addressing 
food security challenges’ (EC 2010e) 

Commission  communication  ‘  Increasing  the  impact  of  EU  development  policy:  an  agenda  for 
change’ (EC 2011c) 

Commission communication ‘Enhancing maternal and child nutrition in external assistance: an EU 
policy framework’ (EC 2013b) 

Commission communication ‘ The EU approach to resilience: learning from food security crises’ 
(EC 2012c) 

EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) 

Commission communication ‘An energy policy for Europe’ (EC 2007a) 

Commission communication ‘A European strategic energy technology plan (SET-plan) — Towards 
a low carbon future’ (EC 2007b) 

Commission  communication  ‘Limiting  global  climate  change  to  2  degrees  Celsius  —  The  way 
ahead for 2020 and beyond’ (EC 2007c) 

Commission communication ‘Energy 2020  — A strategy for competitive, sustainable and secure 
energy’ (EC 2010f) 

28 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52011DC024452011DC0244 

29 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32013R1380  

30 COM(2013)0659 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A52013DC0659 

31 SWD(2013)343 

32 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=LEGISSUM:02_2  

33 JOIN(2016)049 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52016JC0049 

34 COM(2017)0198 final , https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2017%3A198%3AFIN  

6 

 
 
 
                                                            
Bio-based industries 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Commission communication ‘Energy roadmap 2050’ (EC 2011d) 

Commission communication ‘A policy framework for climate and energy in the period from 2020 
to 2030’ (EC 2014a) 
Commission  communication:  ‘Accelerating  Europe’s  transition  to  a  low-carbon  economy’  (EC 
2016k) 
Clean Energy Package (2016) 
Commission communication 'The role of waste-to-energy in the circular economy', (EC 2017a) 

Commission communication ‘A lead market initiative for Europe’ (EC 2007d) 

Commission  communication  ‘Preparing  for  our  future:  developing  a  common  strategy  for  key 
enabling technologies in the EU’ (EC 2009) 

Commission communication: ‘A stronger European industry for growth and economic recovery’ 
(EC 2012d) 

Commission communication ‘For a European industrial renaissance’ (EC 2014f) 

Future strategy on plastics use, reuse and recycling (EC 2016l) 

Cross-cutting policies relevant for the bioeconomy 

Environmental  protection  and 
Climate Change 

Circular economy — Waste 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EU Action Plan for Nature, People and the Environment (COM(2017)0198 final) 

EU Biodiversity Strategy (COM/2011/0244 final) 

EU Strategy on adaptation to climate change (COM/2013/0216 final) 

Commission communication 'Towards a circular economy: a zero waste programme for Europe' 
(EC 2014e) 

Commission communication ‘Closing the loop — An EU action plan for the circular economy’ (EC 
2015b) 

Commission communication 'The role of waste-to-energy in the circular economy' (EC 2017a)  

Future strategy on plastics use, reuse and recycling (EC 2016l) 

  Waste package 2018 

Regional 
specialisation 

policies  — 

Smart 

Research and innovation 

Industrial policy 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fertiliser Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 2003/2003) 

A European Strategy for Plastics in a Circular Economy (EC 2018) 

Commission  communication  ‘Regional  policy  contributing  to  smart  growth  in  Europe  2020’  (EC 
2010g) 

Commission  communication  ‘Strengthening  Innovation  in  Europe's  Regions:  Strategies  for 
resilient, inclusive and sustainable growth (EC 2017) 

Commission communication ‘Europe 2020 flagship initiative — Innovation union’ (EC 2010a) 

Commission  Communication  ‘Investing  in  a  smart,  innovative  and  sustainable  Industry-  A 
renewed EU Industrial Policy Strategy’ (COM/2017/0479 final) 

Table 1: EU policies relevant for the bioeconomy 

The  Bioeconomy  Strategy  provides  a  coherent  framework  that  cuts  across  various  sectors  and 
policies,  allowing  to  build  synergies  (i.e.  the  exploitation  of  a  service  leading  to  the  increased 
provision  of  another  service),  addressing  trade-offs  (i.e.  the  exploitation  of  a  service  to  the 
detriment of another one) and delivering sustainability across various policy and sectoral objectives. 
In  particular,  the  renewed  Industrial  Policy  Strategy,  the  Circular  Economy  Action  Plan  and 
Accelerating  Clean  Energy  Innovation  refer  to  the  bioeconomy  as  key  for  accelerating  progress 
towards a circular, low-carbon economy.  

The  European  Commission  is  therefore  updating  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  in  order  to 
respond to the current policy priority needs. In line with the new EU policies, the evolved objectives 
of the updated European Bioeconomy Strategy are the following: 

1.  Ensuring  food  security.  Food  and  farming  systems  are  a  fundamental  part  of  the 
bioeconomy,  but  they  urgently  need  to  be  transformed  to  become  more  sustainable, 
nutrition-sensitive,  resilient  and  inclusive  in  view  of  a  growing  world  population,  climate 

7 

 
 
change and other environmental challenges, including water scarcity and loss of biodiversity 
and of productive land.35  

2.  Managing  natural  resources  sustainably,  as  central  for  a  bioeconomy  whose  parts  are 
increasingly interlinked. More than ever, a circular bioeconomy depends on an efficient and 
sustainable  use  of  biological  resources,  against  the  backdrop  of  an  increasing  demand  for 
biomass. The European Bioeconomy Strategy aims to restore and enhance ecosystems, for 
instance addressing the root causes of the declining health of global oceans and the collapse 
of biodiversity. 

3.  Reducing dependence on non-renewable resources, including replacing fossil fuels. Today, 
bioenergy is the EU’s largest renewable energy source, and it is expected to remain a key 
component of the energy mix in 2030.36  Moreover, a scaled-up and strengthened bio-based 
sector  can  do  more  than  non-renewable  substitution:  it  can  support  the  renewal  of  the  EU 
industrial  base;  it  can  contribute  to  the  greening  of  industrial  products;  and  it  can  help  to 
systematically turn bio-waste and discards into value, thus achieving circularity. 

4.  Mitigating  and  adapting  to  climate  change,  by  combining  enhanced  ecosystems  services 
with a renewed bio-based industrial base reducing energy demand and lowering emissions, 
and with the provision of a more resource efficient, sustainable primary production on land 
and  sea.  A  sustainable  bioeconomy  has  a  pivotal  role  in  reducing  pressures  on  major 
ecosystems such as oceans, forests and soils to a level respecting all planetary boundaries, 
and support their pivotal role for balanced nutrient cycles and as carbon sinks.37  

5.  Creating jobs and maintaining European competitiveness. In 2015, the bioeconomy sectors 
employed  nearly  one  in  ten  EU  workers  –  18  million  people  –  and  generated  EUR  2.3 
trillion  turnover.38  Deploying  a  sustainable  bioeconomy  will  support  competitiveness  by 
capitalising on advances in life sciences and biotechnologies, as well as innovations merging 
the physical, digital and biological worlds, in some of the EU’s most significant sectors and 
industries.  A  more  proportionate  sharing  of  the  benefits  of  a  competitive  and  sustainable 
bioeconomy among primary producers could benefit job creation at a local level. 

Through  this  Strategy  and  Action  Plan  the  European  Commission  further  demonstrates  its 
commitment to "…mainstream the Sustainable Development Goals into EU policies and initiatives, 
with sustainable development as an essential guiding principle for all its policies".3940 It also aims 
to  achieve  a  better  integration  of  Bioeconomy  with  the  Circular  Economy,  as  called  by  the 
European Parliament in its report on Cohesion and Circular Economy.41  

35 http://www.fao.org/publications/sofi/en/; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0253-3 

36 “Renewable Energy Prospects for the European Union”, 2018  

37 https://newclimateeconomy.report/2018/ 

38 Ronzon, T. et al., Sustainability, 10, 6, 1745, (2018), doi: 10.3390/su10061745 

39 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A12012E%2FTXT 

40 Eurostat EU SDG Monitoring Report 

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/9234939/8-18092018-AP-EN.pdf/888b182d-f6f9-4e0d-9e48-4b4e1561333e 

41https://dm.eesc.europa.eu/EESCDocumentSearch/Pages/redresults.aspx?LANG=EN&k=(documentsource:EESC)(dossiername:NAT)(dossiernumber:739)(documentlang

uage:EN) 

8 

 
 
                                                            
2.2.  The EU Bioeconomy 

The bioeconomy covers all sectors and systems that rely on biological resources (animals, plants, 
micro-organisms  and  derived  biomass,  including  organic  waste),  their  functions  and  principles.  It 
includes  and  interlinks:  land  and  marine  ecosystems  and  the  services  they  provide;  all  primary 
production sectors that use and produce biological resources, i.e. agriculture, forestry, fisheries and 
aquaculture; and all economic and industrial sectors that use biological resources and processes to 
produce  food,  feed,  bio-based  products,  energy  and  services.  It  cuts  across  these  sectors  and 
systems, interlinking them and creating synergies. While biotechnology is at the heart of bio-based 
processes,  health  biotechnology  and  biological  medicines  are  not  included  in  the  bioeconomy 
definition. 

Sustainable bioeconomy activities are deemed central to meet the Sustainable Development Goals 
(Figure 1), from food and nutrition security to ensuring energy access and health.42 What follows is 
an  overview  of  the  economic,  social  and  environmental  dimensions  of  the  bioeconomy  and  its 
expected impacts towards 2030. 

Figure 1. The Sustainable Development Goals “wedding cake”: Source: Azote Images for Stockholm Resilience Centre. 

42 El-Chichakli B. et al., Nature, 535, 221–223 (2016), doi:10.1038/535221a ; Philippidis G. et al. (2018), Joint Research Centre technical report, doi:10.2760/560977; 

Communiqués Global Bioeconomy Summits, Berlin 2015 and 2018, http://gbs2015.com/fileadmin/gbs2015/Downloads/Communique_final.pdf; 

http://gbs2018.com/fileadmin/gbs2018/Downloads/GBS_2018_Communique.pdf; 

http://iinas.org/tl_files/iinas/downloads/bio/IINAS_IFEU_2018_Linkages_SDGs_and_GSIs.pdf; SWD(2016) 390 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52016SC0390; Müller A.et al., IASS Working Paper, (2015), doi: 10.2312/iass.2015.010; 

https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/982044_Anand_Innovation%20and%20Sustainable%20Development_A%20Bioeconomic%20Perspect

ive.pdf; http://www.bioeconomyalliance.eu/sites/default/files/EUBA%20SDGs%20final.pdf. 

9 

 
 
 
                                                            
According  to  work  from  the  European  Commission’s  Joint  Research  Centre  (JRC),43  in  2015  the 
bioeconomy in the EU-28 generated approximately EUR 2.3 trillion of turnover,44 which represents 
a 5% increase with respect to the previous year. In the same year, the bioeconomy created EUR 621 
billion of value added in the EU (Figure 2), representing 4.2% of the EU's Gross Domestic Product 
and employing over 18 million persons in the EU,45 mainly in agriculture and the manufacture of 
food and beverages (together 76% of bioeconomy employment). In 2015, the highest value added 
annual  growth  occurred  in  the  manufacture  of  bio-based  chemicals  (excl.  biofuels)  (+26%),  the 
production of bio-electricity (+15%) and the manufacture of rubber and bio-based plastics (+13%), 
generating altogether an additional EUR 3.5 billion of value added compared to the year before. 

43 Ronzon, T. et al., Sustainability, 10, 6, 1745, (2018), doi: 10.3390/su10061745. 

44 Included in the calculation are primary sectors (agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture), manufacturing sectors (food, beverage and other agro-manufacturing, 

bio-based textiles wood products and wooden furniture, paper, bio-based chemicals, bio-based pharmaceutical, bio-based plastics and rubber, and biofuels) and 

the production of bioelectricity. Estimates of jobs and growth created in the bio-based construction sector and bio-heat generation as well as in the management 

of bio-based wastes and bio-remediation are currently lacking.  

45 This number includes primary production and biomass manufacturing. Data sources: EUROSTAT lfsa_egan22d for agriculture; EUROSTAT for_emp_lfs for forestry; 

STECF 2016 for fisheries; STECF 2014 Aquaculture; EUROSTAT Structural Business Statistics for all other sectors. The 18 million people working in the bioeconomy 

comprises 9.2 million agricultural workers as estimated in the Labour Force Survey (coded lfsa_egan22d) conducted by Eurostat, a source usually used when 

comparing employment data across different sectors of activities. It refers to people aged 15 years or over working in agriculture as their main activity (EU-28, 

2015). The farm structure survey (FSS, coded ef_lflegaa), also conducted by Eurostat, reports 22.2 million persons employed in agriculture, as their first, secondary 

and minor activity, for the EU in 2013. According to the same source, 11.4 million persons are working on agricultural enterprises generating EUR 4 000 or more as 

an annual standard output. 

10 

 
 
                                                            
Figure  2.  Turnover  (billion  EUR),  value  added  (billion  EUR)  and  employment  (million  people)  in  the  EU-28  in  2015  by  bioeconomy 
sector.46 Adapted from: European Commission's Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy (2018), Brief on jobs and growth of the bioeconomy 
2009-2015. doi:10.2760/157298, JRC112875. 

Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and Spain generated 64% of the total EU Bioeconomy 
value  added  in  2015.  Additionally,  specific  features  of  national  bioeconomies  can  be  observed.47 
For  instance,  thet  bioeconomy  in  Finland,  Sweden,  Estonia  and  Latvia  is  oriented  towards  the 
forest-based sector (i.e. forestry and the forest-based industries, including the manufacture of wood 
and  paper).  In  Italy  and  Portugal,  14%  and  16%  of  the  bioeconomy  value  added,  respectively, 
comes  from  the  manufacture  of  bio-based  textiles.  Finland  and  Sweden  generate  25%  and  20%, 

46 Some specific bioeconomy sectors are not covered in this figure, e.g. production of bio-heat and management of organic wastes  

47 Ronzon, T. et al., Sustainability, 10, 6, 1745, (2018), doi: 10.3390/su10061745. 

11 

AgricultureForestryFishing and aquacultureManufacture of foodandbeverages and other agro-manufacturingManufacture of bio-based textilesManufacture of wood products and furnitureManufacture of paperManufacture of bio-based chemicals,    pharmaceuticals, plastics and rubber (excluding biofuels)Manufacture of liquid biofuelsProduction of bioelectricity 
 
 
 
                                                            
respectively,  of  their  bioeconomy  value  added  from  the  manufacture  of  paper.  Finally,  36%  of 
Ireland’s  and  35%  of  Denmark’s  bioeconomy  value  added  were  generated  by  the  manufacture  of 
bio-based chemicals, pharmaceuticals, plastics  and rubber. This shows that there is not one single 
bioeconomy in Europe but several bioeconomies adapted to local contexts. 

Between  2009  and  2015,  employment  has  increased  in  bio-based  chemicals,  bio-based 
pharmaceuticals,  bio-based  plastics  and  bio-based  rubber,  notwithstanding  the  overall  EU  labour 
force decline in agriculture, which drove down the EU Bioeconomy jobs in a proportional fashion 
(Figure  3).48  These  employment  trends  are  expected  to  continue  to  2030.49  Decentralised  models, 
where  at  least  the  first  transformation  of  biomass  takes  place  as  close  as  possible  to  the  biomass 
provisioning areas, being them rural (agriculture, forestry), coastal (aquatic) or urban and peri-urban 
(biowaste and waste water), offer potential for reinvigorating local economies through the creation 
of  skilled  ‘green’  jobs.  The  use  of  biomass  to  produce  materials  can  directly  support  5-10  times 
more employment, and generate 4-9 times more value added, than energy uses, principally due to 
longer, more complex supply chains for material use.50  

Figure  3.  Change  in  number  of  jobs  in  the  EU  bioeconomy  between  2009  and  2015,  by  sector  (log  scale).  Source:  Joint  Research 
Centre, https://datam.jrc.ec.europa.eu/datam/mashup/BIOECONOMICS.  

The relative contribution of primary sectors to the EU Bioeconomy is significantly lower in terms 
of  value  added  (33%)  than  in  terms  of  the  number  of  persons  employed  (55%).  This  is  clearly 
reflected  at  national  level  too,  where  several  EU  countries  have  a  high  share  of  jobs  in  the 
bioeconomy, however with a comparatively low resulting added value (Figure 4), mainly due to a 

48Joint Research Centre, https://datam.jrc.ec.europa.eu/datam/mashup/BIOECONOMICS. 

49 Philippidis G. et al. (2018), JRC technical report, doi:10.2760/560977  

50 Carus et al., Bioplastics MAGAZINE, 6, 52-55, (2011) 

12 

 
 
 
 
                                                            
predominance  of  employment  in  the  less  productive  sectors.51  Figure  4  reveals  a  rather 
heterogeneous  geographical  contribution  to  the  EU  Bioeconomy  at  Member  State  level.  In 
particular,  low  bioeconomy  added  value  in  the  Central  and  Eastern  Europan  countries  is  at  odds 
with their high, and, compared to other European regions, yet underutilised biomass potential.52 To 
address  this  gap,  the  BIOEAST  Initiative’s  mission53  is  to  assist  Central  and  Eastern  European 
countries to implement their bioeconomy vision for 2030,54 offering opportunities for a sustainable 
increase  of  biomass  production,,  a  circular  processing  of  the  available  biomass  and  viable  rural 
areas. 

Figure  4.  Left:  Geographical  distribution  of  bioeconomy  added  value  across  EU  Member  States  (in  million  EUR,  2015).  Right: 
Geographical distribution of bioeconomy location quotient across EU Member States (2015). The location quotient, or job concentration 
factor, is the indicator usually used to measure how ‘concentrated’ a sector is in a Member State compared with the EU, i.e. the share 
of Member State employment in the bioeconomy (or in a given sector of the bioeconomy) divided by the EU employment share in the 
bioeconomy 
Centre, 
given 
https://datam.jrc.ec.europa.eu/datam/mashup/BIOECONOMICS. 

Research 

Source: 

sector). 

same 

Joint 

the 

(or 

in 

In terms of its environmental benefits, the bioeconomy can contribute to the defossilisation of major 
industries,  such  as  the  energy  and  transport  sectors,  the  chemical  industry  (e.g.  plastics)  and  the 
construction  sector  (use  of  wood  and  its  composites  with  other  materials  in  the  construction 
industry  as  a  substitute  for  non-renewable  building  materials,  such  as  steel  and  concrete  with 
possibly  lower  use  of  energy  and  greenhouse  gas  emissions).  Even  though  the  production  of 
biological  renewable  resources  is  also  associated  with  greenhouse  gas  emissions,55  resource 

51 Less productive sectors are (in increasing order of productivity): Agriculture, Manufacture of bio-based textiles, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Manufacture of wood 

products and furniture (http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/6/1745). Ronzon, T. et al., Sustainability, 10, 6, 1745, (2018), doi: 10.3390/su10061745. 

52 Conclusions of the project: www.s2biom.eu; see also de Wit M. et al., Biomass and Bioenergy, 34, 2, 188-202, (2009), doi: 10.1016/j.biombioe.2009.07.011); Salamon, 

P., Joint Research Centre Technical Report, (2017), doi 10.2760/363389; https://biconsortium.eu/sites/biconsortium.eu/files/downloads/Country-Report-

Poland.pdf 

53 http://www.bioeast.eu/ 

54 http://www.eu2016.sk/data/documents/160916-bratislava-declaration-and-roadmap-en16.pdf 

55 https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases 

13 

 
 
 
 
                                                            
consumption  and  other  environmental  risks,56  there  is  growing  understanding  that  deep 
defossilisation  and  remaining  under  the  2°C  limit  will  not  be  possible  without  sustainable 
bioeconomy  activities,  given  their  potential  for  carbon  sequestration,  the  substitution  of  fossil 
resources  with  sustainable  biomass-based  resources,  and  their  large  greenhouse  gas  emission 
reduction  potential  related  to  more  resource  efficient  and  sustainable  production  patterns.57  For 
example,  wood  products  have  significantly  lower  greenhouse  gas  emissions  than  fossil  material 
alternatives  over  the  complete  life  cycle  of  the  product  (including  use  and  disposal),  yielding  an 
average  saving  of  1.5  to  3.5  tons  of  carbon  dioxide  emissions  per  1  ton  of  wood  products  used, 
instead of construction materials such as concrete.58 Moreover, the mix of industrial biotechnology 
with advanced chemistry can increase the efficiency of current production processes.  

Notwithstanding the wealth of information available, significant data gaps remain, impeding fully 
assess the different impacts  of the bioeconomy. Notably, information  is still scarce on how  much 
biomass  is  available  and  can  be  mobilised  sustainably,  how  much  is  being  used  and  for  which 
purposes,  and  how  the  increased  pressure  on  natural  resources  can  be  reconciled  with 
environmental,  economic  and  social  sustainability  in  Europe  and  globally.  Examples  of  potential 
competing  demands  for  biomass  are  detailed  in  the  4th  (and  latest)  foresight  exercise59  of  the 
Standing  Committee  on  Agricultural  Research.60  For  instance,  while  Europe  is  self-sufficient  in 
terms of food production, at a global level producing enough food for an increasing population is a 
central question, yet one that implies increasing cropping areas at the expenses of forests, which are 
indispensable  for  the  future  (see  2.2.1).  Moreover,  food  that  is  produced  directly  for  humans  and 
feed  that  is  produced  for  animals  in  order  to  feed  humans  are  in  competition  for  arable  land.  In 
industrial  countries,  more  than  40%  of  the  total  land  is  used  for  feed  production.  Also,  as  fossil 
resources  gradually  phase  out,  crops  cultivated  for  biofuel  and  bioenergy,  and  also  for  the 
production of materials, could take away land and calories from human nutrition, with the risk of 
increasing the pricesi of food commodities.  

To  help  closing  these  knowledge  gaps,  the  European  Commission’s  Joint  Research  Centre  (JRC) 
has  been  tasked  with  providing  data,  models  and  analyses  of  EU  and  global  biomass  potential, 
supply, demand and its sustainability on a long-term basis.61 This work links in with international 
efforts, because examining biomass supply and demand without considering the global context, in 
particularly  the  rapidly  expanding  food  demand  of  non-OECD  countries,  would  underestimate 

56 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?toc=OJ%3AL%3A2018%3A156%3ATOC&uri=uriserv%3AOJ.L_.2018.156.01.0001.01.ENG; COM(2016)0767 final/2 - 

2016/0382 (COD), https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52016PC0767R%2801%29; COM(2016)0767 final/2 - 2016/0382 (COD), 

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52016PC0767R%2801%29 

57 Dahiya S. et al., Bioresource Technology, 248 A, 2-12, (2017), doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2017.07.176 ; Mirabella N. et al., Journal of Cleaner Production, 65, 28-41, 

(2014), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2013.10.051 ; Giroto, F. et al., Waste Management 45, 32–41, (2015), doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2015.06.008. 

58 CLIMWOOD 2030: ‘Climate benefits of material substitution by forest biomass and harvested wood products: Perspective 2030' 2016 ISBN 978-92-79-59947-7 

http://europa.eu/!NN68bj  

59 https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/ki-01-15-295-enn.pdf#view=fit&pagemode=none  

60 SCAR provides strategic policy advice to the European Commission, Member States and Associated Countries, on the European R&I3 strategies in agriculture and in 

the wider bioeconomy. It has developed joint foresights, common research agendas, mapping and analysis of SCAR Member States' research capacities, all of 

which feed into the development of the European Research Area, the Framework Programmes and joint initiatives such as ERANET Co-funds, Joint Programming 

initiatives (JPIs), European Innovation Platforms (EIPs) etc. See https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/24-09_ce_scar_role.pdf#view=fit&pagemode=none for the 

role of SCAR.  

61 https://biobs.jrc.ec.europa.eu/page/biomass-assessment-study-jrc 

14 

 
 
                                                            
future competition for resources, resulting market effects, as well as possible global geopolitical and 
environmental repercussions that might well reach the local bioeconomies in the EU.62  

Moreover,  forecasts  of  future  trends  are  required  in  order  to  steer  Research  and  Innovation 
investments, to ensure a coherent policy approach that coordinates the demands for biomass from 
different  sectors  and  to  ensure  an  optimum  contribution  of  the  bioeconomy  to  defossilisation 
pathways. 

2.2.1.

  Ecosystems and their services 

Since  2012,  climate  change  has  accelerated,  thus  becoming  a  more  pressing  issue  than  ever 
before.63  At  the  same  time,  biodiversity  loss  and  land  degradation  have  emerged  as  threats  as 
serious as climate change.64  

Biological resources, the vitality of ecosystems they inhabit and biodiversity are at the very heart of 
the manifold bioeconomy areas. Healthy ecosystems are essential to human wellbeing; they provide 
services  including  habitat  maintenance,  sustaining  food  and  biomass  production,  pollination, 
regulation  of  freshwater  quantity  and  quality,  soil  formation,  balanced  nutrient  cycling  and 
regulation  of  floods,  not  to  mention  climate  regulation  services,  essential  also  to  the  provision  of 
land  and  marine-based  services.  Soils  are  a  fundamental  factor  in  the  transition  towards  a 
sustainable  bioeconomy  as  society  depends  on  fertile  lands  and  their  long-term  maintenance 
because  of  their  associated  ecosystem  services.65  Biodiversity  is  at  the  base  of  robust  ecosystem 
condition and functioning, which in turn ensures the continuous and dependable flow of services.  

However,  human  activities  exert  increasing  pressure  on  soils,  oceans,  water,  air,  biodiversity, 
climate  and  other  natural  resources.66  Biodiversity  has  been  shown  to  be  a  key  determinant  for 
productivity,  as  important  as  nutrients  and  climate,  and  biodiversity  loss  reduces  ecosystems 
productivity and stability.67 Nature’s services to humankind are under threat due to the continuing 
loss  of  biodiversity,  which  has  had  negative  consequences  for  the  delivery  of  many  ecosystem 
services over the last decades: In 2008, the cost of losing terrestrial biodiversity at global scale has 
been  estimated  to  be  just  under  1%  of  Gross  Domestic  Product  for  the  year  2010.  These  costs 
increase  and  are  predicted  to  be  7%  of  global  consumption  by  2050.68  The  degradation  of  the 
Earth’s land surface through human activities is negatively affecting the well-being of at least 3.2 
billion people, and it costs the equivalent of about 10% of the world’s annual gross product in 2010 
through the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. 69 

62 OECD report "Biomass for a sustainable bioeconomy: technology and governance" (2017) [DSTI/STP/BNCT(2016)7/FINAL] 

63 https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/ 

64 https://www.ipbes.net/assessment-reports 

65 https://naturalsciences.ch/uuid/a9c0c267-c1f6-59c5-9a25-e88c559349b2?r=20170706115333_1523540943_f3e5aeea-be69-5193-8d38-78d0ae65453d 

66 https://www.ipbes.net/news/media-release-biodiversity-nature%E2%80%99s-contributions-continue-%C2%A0dangerous-decline-scientists-warn; 

http://www.resourcepanel.org/reports/global-material-flows-and-resource-productivity-database-link; https://esdac.jrc.ec.europa.eu/content/global-soil-

biodiversity-atlas; http://www.un.org/Depts/los/global_reporting/WOA_RPROC/Summary.pdf; https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/status-of-

marine-fish-stocks-3/assessment. 

67 https://www.nature.com/articles/nature16867. http://www.nature.com/articles/nature23886 

68 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/enveco/biodiversity/pdf/ieep_alterra_report.pdf  

69  https://www.ipbes.net/assessment-reports/ldr 

15 

 
 
                                                            
Globally,  these  declines  have  occurred  in  part  because  of  the  intensive  agriculture  and  forestry 
practices.  

Major  ecosystems,  such  as  oceans,  forests  and  soils  are  crucial  carbon  sinks,  without  which 
achieving the balance between emissions and removals of greenhouse gases will not be possible, as 
pointed  out  in  the  Paris  Agreement.  Oceans  absorb  up  to  30%  of  the  annual  emissions  of  carbon 
dioxide generated by human activity, helping mitigate the rise in greenhouse gases.70 However, this 
benefit comes at a steep ecological cost; the absorbed carbon dioxide alters the carbonate chemistry 
of the waters, leading to an increase in the acidity of seawater. Studies at open ocean and coastal 
sites around the world have revealed that current levels of marine acidity have increased on average 
by about 26% since the start of the Industrial Revolution (pH reduction of 0.1) and that marine life 
is exposed to conditions falling outside previously experienced natural variability.71 

At a global level, between 2010 and 2015 the natural forest area has decreased by a net 6.5 million 
hectare per year.72 Afforestation and natural expansion of forest do not compensate for these losses, 
and the continued overall loss of forest land contributes to water scarcity, unmitigated spring floods 
and climate change. However, against this trend, natural forest area in Europe is increasing, through 
natural  regeneration,  reforestation  and  afforestation  practices.  Moreover,  the  growing  stock 
increases, as harvesting is lower than the yearly increment.73 For this reason, European forests act as 
a considerable carbon sink whose carbon sequestration activity removes, on average, about 9% of 
total annual greenhouse gas emissions in the EU, 74 and has been doing so for the last decades.  

Exploitation  of  certain  ecosystem  services  may  lead  to  unintended  environmental  consequences 
throughout the ‘ecosystem services supply chain’. To this end, trade-offs and synergies in service 
provision must be carefully analysed.75 

2.2.2.

  Primary sectors and biomass flows 

The  agriculture,  forest-based  and  marine  sectors  (mainly  aquaculture  and  fisheries)  are  the  main 
primary producers/suppliers of biomass.76 The average EU-28 annual domestic biomass production 
from  the  land-based  sectors  (forestry  and  agriculture,  excluding  pastures)  is  1466  megatonnes  of 
(above ground) dry matter. The breakdown by commodities and sectors is shown in Figure 5. 

70 https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/files/report/2017/TheSustainableDevelopmentGoalsReport2017.pdf  

71 https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/ocean-acidification-1/assessment 

72 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4793e.pdf 

73 Camia et al. 2018. Joint Research Centre, JRC Science for Policy Report, doi:10.2760/181536181536 

74 https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/european-union-greenhouse-gas-inventory-2017 

75 http://www.openness-project.eu/library/reference-book/sp-ecosystem-service-trade-offs-and-synergies 

76 Camia et al. 2018. Joint Research Centre, JRC Science for Policy Report, doi:10.2760/181536 

16 

 
 
                                                            
Figure 5. EU-28 annual biomass production from land-based sectors, excluding pastures (10-year average 2006-2015, in megatonnes 
dry matter). Adapted from Camia et al. (2018). Joint Research Centre Science for Policy Report, doi:10.2760/181536, JRC109869  
In 2015, agriculture occupied about half of the land area of the European Union77 and it employed 
4.2%  of  the  EU-28  working  population.78  Agriculature  supplies  the  European  economy  with  a 
diversity of essential products and services such as food, feed, material, energy and recreation.  

According to the medium-term outlook for agriculture towards 2030, the EU's utilised agricultural 
area is expected to continue to decline.79 As we approach 2030, EU per capita consumption of meat 
is  expected to  drop  back  to  its current  level,  after increases  in  the  first  part  of  the outlook  period 
2017-2030.  Nevertheless,  EU  feed  use  is  expected  to  rise  further  over  the  outlook  period,  in 
response to more poultry and dairy production and more intensive beef production. Greenhouse gas 
emissions  from  agriculture  are  expected  to  decrease  by  2030.  Technological  development, 
innovations  and  digitisation  (e.g.  precision  farming,  nature-based  solutions,  breeding)  are 
significantly  improving  the  potential  for  higher  resource  efficiency,  decreased  environmental  and 
climate  impact,  increased  resilience  and  decreased  costs.80  Nevertheless,  system  redesign  is 
essential to deliver optimum outcomes as ecological and economic conditions change.81 Although 
total agricultural income is expected to decrease considerably in real terms over the outlook period, 
income  per  worker  is  expected  to  increase  slightly  due  to  structural  change  and  people  leaving 
agriculture. 

Forests and other wooded land occupy around 43% of EU land and are a source of wood and non-
wood  products,  providing  a  wide  range  of  ecosystem  services,  such  as  carbon  storage  and 
sequestration,  habitat  provision  and  water  regulation.82  Increasing  the  carbon  storage  in  existing 

77 https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.AGRI.ZS?year_high_desc=false 

78 Eurostat, 2016d. Labour Force Survey (lfs_egan22d). http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Labour_market.  

79 https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/sites/agriculture/files/markets-and-prices/medium-term-outlook/2017/2017-fullrep_en.pdf 

80 cfr CAP Strategic plans. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2018%3A392%3AFIN  

81 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-018-0114-0; https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13593-018-0519-1 

82 https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/forest_en 

17 

 
 
  
                                                            
forests  is  a  cost-effective  mitigation  measure,  but  signs  of  decreasing  carbon  storage  have  been 
observed in recent years mainly due to the changing age structure of EU forests.83 There is potential 
for increasing the carbon storage of European forests through sustainable forest management.  

About 84% of the EU forest area is considered potentially available for wood supply. In this area 
444 megatonnes of wood grow every year (wood net annual increment, i.e. excluding losses due to 
natural  mortality  of  trees).  The  EU  average  wood  harvest  rate  is  around  65  %  of  the  wood  net 
annual  increment,  though  such  rates  vary  widely  across  the  member  states.  This  results  in  many 
cases in an increase of forest-based woody biomass stock over time84 (around 100 megatonnes of 
carbon  annually  and  approximately  9%  of  Europe’s  fossil  fuel  emissions).  However,  reported 
harvesting  is  likely  to  be  consistently  underestimated  by  up  to  20%,  meaning  that  biomass 
availability is actually higher than statistically recorded.  

According  to  the  Forest-Based  Industries  Blueprint,85  over  95  %  of  roundwood  used  by  the  EU's 
wood-processing sector comes from EU forests. There is a potential for increasing harvest rates and 
wood  mobilisation  to  provide  additional  quantities  of  woody  biomass  (as  advocated  by  some 
stakeholders86) without exceeding the total annual increments, in order to maintain a domestic EU 
wood supply to the existing wood-processing industries, and also to service the growing demands 
from  bio-based  materials  and  products  within  the  bioeconomy.  Yet,  trade-offs  with  other  forest 
ecosystem  services  -  e.g.  carbon  sink,  nature  conservation,  recreation,  soil  and  flood  protection  – 
need to be carefully assessed. The implementation of sustainable forest management principles, as 
enshrined in the EU Forest Strategy, must ensure sustainable wood mobilisation in the EU.  

Another  crucial  source  of  biomass,  which  is  increasing  in  importance  as  land  ecosystems  come 
under  increasing  pressure,  is  biomass  from  fisheries,  aquaculture  and  from  farming  the  seas  and 
oceans for other types of biomass (e.g. algae). Fisheries and aquaculture are important  sources of 
food  and  nutrition  and  have  the  potential  to  make  a  significant  contribution  to  food  security  and 
adequate nutrition levels for a global population expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050.87 Moreover, 
they  are  an  important  source  of  income  and  support  the  livelihoods  of  hundreds  of  millions  of 
people around the world.88 Aquaculture is the fastest growing animal food producing sector in the 
world  and  is  an  increasingly  important  contributor  to  global  food  supply  and  economic  growth.89 
The  sector  has  increased  production  by  76%  since  2004  and  more  than  four  times  since  1990. 
However, in global terms the EU is still a relatively small player (Figure 6). Sustainable aquaculture 

83 Pilli R. et al., Biogeosciences, 14, 2387-2405 (2017), doi:10.5194/bg-14-2387-2017 

84 NB in fact the NAI (net annual increment) quoted is only for above-ground "merchantable woody biomass, i.e. "roundwood" that is bigger than a minimum specified 

top diameter, so smaller stem wood, small branches, leaves and below-ground biomass are not included. 

85 SWD (2013) 343 

86 http://simwood.efi.int/uploads/Presentations/final_conference/19_Schelhaas-Nabuurs_20171013.pdf;  

http://www.forestplatform.org/system/attachments/files/000/000/072/original/FTP_renewed_Vision_2030.pdf?1472814337 (vision target 2) 

87 SAM High Level Group Food from the oceans: how can more food and biomass be obtained from the oceans in a way that does not deprive future generations of their 

benefits? https://ec.europa.eu/research/sam/index.cfm?pg=oceanfood; OECD report "Biomass for a sustainable bioeconomy: technology and governance" (2017) 

[DSTI/STP/BNCT(2016)7/FINAL]. 

88 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5555e.pdf 

89 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7989t.pdf 

18 

 
 
                                                            
faces particular challenges in the EU, due to competition for space and markets and administrative 
constraints.90 

Figure  6.  World  and  EU-28  seafood  production  (capture  and  aquaculture)  from  1990  to  2014  in  megatonnes.  Source:  Food  and 
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2016 

A further source of biomass with increasing importance are the biological residues coming from the 
agricultural, forest-based and fishery sectors, and also the waste and sidestreams from other sources 
such as households, food production, and other biomass manufacturing (see 2.3). 

When analysing biomass demand, currently ca. 50% of the biomass in the EU is used for feed and 
bedding, a significant fraction of which is needed for livestock production (Figure 7).  

Figure  7:  Biomass  uses  in  the  EU-28  in  2015.  Adapted  from  Camia  et  al.  (2018),  Joint  Research  Centre  Science  for  Policy  Report, 
doi:10.2760/181536, JRC109869.  

According  to  the  Standing  Committee  of  Agricultural  Research  Foresight  on  Sustainable 
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in the Bioeconomy, the BIO-BOOM scenario foresees that the 
amount  of  biomass  used  globally  for  bio-based  materials  and  chemicals  could  grow  from  1.24 
billion tons in 2012 to 5.7 in 2050,91 while the BIO-MODESTY scenario assumes that the growth in 

90 https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu/documents/43805/1491449/STECF+16-19+-+EU+Aquaculture.pdf  

91 4th SCAR Foresight Exercise https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/ki-01-15-295-enn.pdf 

19 

0.020.040.060.080.0100.0120.0140.0160.0180.0million  tonnesWorldAquacultureCapture0.02.04.06.08.010.012.0million  tonnesEU 28AquacultureCapture 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
demand  for  biomass  for  materials  and  energy  will  be  relatively  low.  In  line  with  Sustainable 
Development  Goal  12,  a  sustainable  supply  and  demand  system  of  biomass  requires  that 
consumption  patterns  are  also  sustainable.  Yet,  this  is  not  always  the  case  today.92,  For  example, 
global  livestock  production  currently  accounts  for  one-third  of  the  global  cropland  use  and  seven 
percent of the total greenhouse gas emissions,93 besides consuming an important fraction of water 
both at global and at EU level.94 Driven by an expected increase in world population, the demand 
for  animal  products  is  expected  to  increase  by  70%  by  2050,95  which  is  likely  to  aggravate 
environmental pressure and to negatively impact climate mitigation measures.96  

2.2.3.

  Oceans and the Blue Bioeconomy 

Oceans cover more than two-thirds of the earth’s surface and contain 97% of the planet’s water.97 
The  global  ocean  economy  contributes  significantly  to  economic  output  and  employment.  The 
Organisation  for  Economic  Co-operation  and  Development  (OECD)  has  estimated  it  at  USD  1.5 
trillion in value added in 2010, or approximately 2.5% of world gross value added.98 Moreover, it 
identified  emerging  ocean-based  industries  as  having  a  particularly  high  potential  in  terms  of 
growth,  innovation  and  contribution  to  addressing  global  challenges  such  as  energy  security, 
environment,  climate  change  and  food  security.  Traditional  activities  may  also  contribute  to  a 
sustainable growth of the Blue Economy, provided that they are put on a sustainable pathway.99 

Marine  and  freshwater  realms  will  be  crucial  to  meet  the  demand  for  food  caused  by  a  rapidly 
growing  world  population.  Marine  resources  already  constitute  an  important  source  of  protein 
worldwide,  but  they  are  not  optimally  used  in  the  EU,  where  human  consumption  focuses  on  a 
small number of top predator species and other uses are not very widespread.100 That translates into 
an untapped potential both for lower trophic levels and the various waste products. For the latter it 
has been estimated that for each tonne of fish eaten, an equal volume of fish material is discarded 
either  as  waste  or  as  a  low  value  by-product.101  That  is  why  farming  the  sea  and  harvesting  its 
resources efficiently is a clear objective of the .European Bioeconomy Strategy Due to conservation 
efforts  and  scientifically  informed  management  plans,  in  some  areas,  such  as  the  North  East 
Atlantic, over time conservation levels are increasing and exploitation levels are improving towards 
sustainability. Still, many stocks remain overfished (40% in 2016) and/or in biological risk (35% in 
2016). Progress to achieve sustainable optimal exploitation to ensure that all  stocks will meet EU 
policy objectives by 2020 seems too slow. The situation is much worse in the Mediterranean Sea, 
where  93%  of  fish  stocks  are  overfished.  Under  the  remit  of  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy,  the 

92 https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/67/12/1026/4605229; Leip A., Environmental Research Letters, 10 (11) (2015); 

http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/10/11/115004/pdf 

93 http://www.fao.org/docrep/018/ar591e/ar591e.pdf 

94 Mekonnen M. et al., Ecosystems, 15, 3, 401-415 (2012), doi: 10.1007/s10021-011-9517-8; Mubareka S. et al., Ecosystem Services, 4, 139-145 (2013), doi: 

10.1016/j.ecoser.2013.03.001 

95 http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/home/en/news_archive/2017_More_Fuel_for_the_Food_Feed.html 

96 http://www.risefoundation.eu/images/files/2018/2018_RISE_LIVESTOCK_FULL.pdf; http://science.sciencemag.org/content/361/6399/eaam5324 

97 http://www.un.org/depts/los/nippon/documents/Non_recurrent_e_publication_Oceans_final.pdf 

98 http://www.oecd.org/sti/the-ocean-economy-in-2030-9789264251724-en.htm 

99 https://ec.europa.eu/research/sam/pdf/sam_food-from-oceans_report.pdf#view=fit&pagemode=none 

100 http://www.un.org/depts/los/nippon/documents/Non_recurrent_e_publication_Oceans_final.pdf 

101 http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2005/03/20717/52862 

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Scientific  Technical  Economic  Committee  for  Fisheries,  together  with  the  European  Commission 
Joint Research Centre, is monitoring the status of the fish stocks, and also the performance of the 
Common Fisheries Policy (Art. 50 of (EU) 1380/2013), in order to provide the necessary scientific 
advice  to  ensure  sustainable  fisheries,  thus  contributing  to  reverse  trends  and  restore  ocean 
health.102 

Next to fish, the extraction of algae biomass is becoming increasingly important, since this source is 
expected to represent an efficient alternative to increase the European biomass production potential, 
especially  for  protein  generation.  Algae  are  currently  used  mainly  by  the  food  and  chemical 
industry  as  raw  material  for  the  extraction  of  hydrocolloids  and  for  human  nutritional  products. 
Increased  investment  in  sustainable  farming  of  algae  has  become  crucial,  especially  for 
commercially  important  species  with  identified  susceptibility  to  ongoing  stressors.  In  the  EU, 
farming of algae is still at an early phase, however the production has increased by 66% between 
2005  and  2014  (source:  FAO  fishstat).  It  requires  further  developments  at  the  technological, 
operational, biological knowledge and economic levels.  

Importantly,  all  Blue  Bioeconomy  activities  depend  on  the  broader  macroeconomic  environment 
and  the  complex  and  uncertain  interactions  with  the  rest  of  the  marine  and  maritime  activities. 
According  to  the  World  Wide  Fund  for  Nature,  up  to  70%  of  the  annual  value  of  global  ocean's 
activity depends  on the health of the ocean,103 and existing pressures would  decimate  the ocean’s 
resources in a business as usual scenario. A critical uncertainty is linked to the observed declining 
health  of  the  ocean  which  appears  to  be  accelerated  due  to  climate  change.  The  United  Nations 
Framework Convention on Climate Change, 21st Conference of the Parties highlighted that climate 
and the ocean are inseparable, and in ways still to be explored and understood. The ocean absorbed 
around 93% of the excess heat trapped by greenhouse gas during the period 1971-2010 and 26% of 
anthropogenic  carbon  dioxide  since  the  beginning  of  the  Industrial  Revolution.  Increase  of  sea 
temperatures,  rise  of  sea  levels  and  ocean  acidification  (the  so  called  "other  carbon  dioxide 
problem")104,105 may all bring an unbearable burden on the marine capital. However, just 4.1% of 
the  ocean  is  classified  as  protected,  but  only  part  of  this  is  effectively  managed.106  The  Ellen 
McArthur Foundation and the World Economic Forum suggested that, current trend continuing, by 
2050,  seas  and  oceans  might  well  contain  more  plastics  than  fish,  by  weight.107  Experts  at  the 
Alfred  Wegener  Institute,  Helmholtz  Centre  for  Polar  and  Marine  Research  have  recently  found 
higher amounts of microplastic in arctic sea ice than ever before.108  

The Blue Bioeconomy can only flourish if managed sustainably. Yet, our knowledge about features 
below the sea surface remains limited, particularly when compared to what we know about the land. 
Therefore,  efforts  are  needed,  including  scientific  research,  to  better  understand  the  impacts  of 
maritime activities on marine ecosystems. A better understanding of ocean resources and the marine 

102 https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/news/saving-our-heritage-worrying-state-mediterranean-fish-stocks 

103 https://www.worldwildlife.org/publications/reviving-the-oceans-economy-the-case-for-action-2015 

104 Doney S. et al., Annual Review of Marine Science, 1, 169-192, (2009), doi: 10.1146/annurev.marine.010908.163834 

105 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/3217494/8461633/KS-04-17-780-EN-N.pdf/f7694981-6190-46fb-99d6-d092ce04083f 

106 https://wdpa.s3.amazonaws.com/Protected_Planet_Reports/2445%20Global%20Protected%20Planet%202016_WEB.pdf 

107 https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications/the-new-plastics-economy-rethinking-the-future-of-plastics 

108 Peeken I. et al., Nature Communications, 9, 1505 (2018), doi:10.1038/s41467-018-03825-5 

21 

 
 
                                                            
environment  is  necessary  to  underpin  sound  policies  and  will  allow  to  better  assess  and  weigh 
opportunities and potential risks inherent to marine bioeconomic activities. The prevailing lack of 
knowledge about the marine realm impedes to tap into its value to tackle current global challenges.  

The  EU  is  stimulating  action  to  provide  better  knowledge,  ecosystem-based,  cross-border  and 
integrated  spatial  planning,  management  and  surveillance.  The  Blue  Growth  Strategy  and  the 
circular  economy  offer  opportunities  to  rethink  growth  models  and  extract  more  value  out  of  our 
limited  resources.  Research  and  Innovation  are  progressing  towards  exploring  the  best  possible 
ways  that  the  ocean  can  continue  to  be  both  a  healthy  and  productive  life  support  system.  Many 
scientific initiatives in place will enhance knowledge and help to push oceans and seas into sight as 
to improve governance and policymaking and to make the most of marine resources. With respect 
to the management of marine living renewable resources, the insistence on "best available scientific 
advice" stipulated in the Common Fisheries Policy basic regulation, could serve as a paradigm for 
other areas, to ensure the integration of scientific knowledge in policy and decision-making. 

2.2.4.

  Bio-based sectors 

The  bio-based  sector  produces  and  uses  renewable  biological  resources  and/or  applies  innovative 
biological processes and principles to deliver bio-based products, processes and services. There are 
conventional  bio-based  products  made  traditionally  from  biomass  (such  as  wood,  cork,  natural 
rubber, paper, textiles, wooden construction materials) and more recently developed products such 
as  bio-based  chemicals,  bio-based  plastics,  etc.  Biofuels  are  also  bio-based  products,  however  as 
they are energy applications, they are discussed in section 2.2.6. 

Bio-based products can substitute fossil-based ones. They can be identical to their fossil alternative 
(“drop-in”) or novel products with entirely new functionalities and potential for new markets (e.g. 
cellulose-based ones, bio-based plastics that are fit for industrial composting and biodegradable in 
the  natural  environment  or  “green”  chemicals).  Bio-based  products  go  far  beyond  biomass 
processing.  They  capitalise  on  the  unprecedented  advances  in  life  sciences  and  biotechnology 
(including  microbiology,  microbiomes  and  enzyme  technologies)  that,  coupled  with  the  digital 
revolution,  allow  to  use  nature’s  “biological  assets”  (its  biochemicals  and  biomaterials)  and  its 
“biomimetic assets” (its functions and processes) to generate significant new sources of economic 
value and future revenue.  

Bio-based processes are characterised by presenting high selectivity and operate under milder and 
more environmentally friendly conditions, compared with traditional processes. A typical example 
is  the  microbial-based  production  of  vitamin  B2  (one  step  process  as  compared  to  a  six-step 
chemical production), which reduces the use of non-renewable raw materials by 75%, the emissions 
of volatile organic compounds to air and water decreases by 50% and operating costs to by 50%. 

The transformation of biomass into a bio-based product takes place in biomass processing facilities. 
When a facility converts biomass into a spectrum of products, it is called a biorefinery.109 

109 A biorefinery is intended as “ an overall concept of a processing plant where biomass feedstocks are converted and extracted into a spectrum of valuable products”. 

Source: US DOE, 1997, Energy, Environmental and Economics (e3) Handbook, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 

Washington D.C. 

22 

 
 
                                                            
The bio-based sector has taken big strides in recent years. The interest in the transition from fossil 
to bio-based products has revitalised traditional sectors by bringing opportunities to diversify their 
product's  portfolio.  Innovation  capitalises  on  the  skills  of  making  use  of  various  biomass  for  the 
bio-based  production,  in  traditional  sectors  such  as  pulp,  woodworking,  textiles  and  wood-based 
construction. 

The pulp, paper and board developed new cellulose-based applications that can replace fossil-based 
textiles and plastics, boost the use of nanofibril applications in bio-based adhesives, laminates, 3D 
printing  and  flexible  electronics,  as  well  as  use  foldable  corrugated  cardboard  for  the  large  scale 
packaging  business  for  Internet  products.  The  revitalisation  of  pulp,  paper  and  board  has  also 
brought solutions for the better utilisation of their side streams for the biofuel production and is also 
now seen increasingly in markets including fine and commodity chemicals, healthcare, automotive, 
consumer  goods,  construction,  etc.  Some  low-tech  products,  such  as  composites,  packaging 
materials, etc., have lower added value but also lower cost and risk, hence are interesting for their 
large potential for replication in a diversity of regions and contexts. 

Another  example  of  novel  bio-based  product  comes  from  textile  fibres  made  of  microfibrillated 
cellulose  from  wood  by  mechanical  processing  and  without  harmful  chemicals.  For  the  textile 
sector, a gap of 180 million tons of textile ﬁbres is expected by 2050, which could mainly be ﬁlled 
by man-made cellulose ﬁbres, bio-based polymer ﬁbres or petrochemical ﬁbres — depending on the 
political and economic framework.110  

The  bio-based  sector  is  a  highly  dynamic  part  of  the  bioeconomy  in  terms  of  jobs  and  turnover 
growth.111  In  the  EU,  between  2009  and  2015  the  overall  growth  rate  of  the  value  added  of  bio-
based sectors ranged between 14% for the manufacture of wood and wooden products and 23% for 
the  manufacture  of  pulp,  paper  and  cardboard.  In  the  same  period,  the  overall  growth  rate  of  EU 
value added of bio-based chemicals, pharmaceuticals, plastics and rubber has been 17%.112 

Bio-based  chemicals  resulting  from  biomass  processing  are  an  important  segment  within  the  bio-
based sector. In 2015, the sector of bio-based chemicals has created the highest number of jobs of 
all  bioeconomy  sectors  (see  2.2).  According  to  the  preliminary  results  of  a  forthcoming  Joint 
Research  Centre  2018  study,  the  EU  bio-based  chemicals  market  is  diverse  and  large  differences 
can  be  found  between  product  categories.  For  example,  the  bio-based  solvents  and  platform 

110 4th SCAR Foresight Exercise, https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/ki-01-15-295-enn.pdf 

111 https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/26451/attachments/1/translations/en/renditions/native 

112 Joint Research Centre, https://datam.jrc.ec.europa.eu/datam/mashup/BIOECONOMICS 

23 

 
 
 
                                                            
chemicals  both  have  a  very  small  bio-based  percentage,  while  on  the  other  hand,  surfactants  and 
cosmetics already enjoy a large bio-based share. Even within the categories with similar bio-based 
share, the differences are large, where bio-based platform chemicals are expected to grow rapidly in 
the coming years, bio-based solvents are expected to grow much less. 

A  1%  increase  of  European  wood-based  products  in  the  market  share  of  the  global  construction, 
textile and plastics markets could generate a revenue for the European wood-based bioeconomy in 
the scale of EUR 10 to 60 billion (depending on the assumptions made – see Table 2).  This would 
amount to 3% - 20% of the current total turnover of the EU forest industry. The additional industrial 
roundwood use of this 1% increase would be at least 83 million cubic metres, which would be 23% 
of  the  total  industrial  roundwood  production  in  the  EU  in  2016  (355  million  cubic  metres,  data 
FAOSTAT).113 However, while the annual harvest would still be below the net annual increment, 
such  an  increase  in  the  EU  roundwood  utilisation  would  reduce  the  EU's  carbon  sink,  therefore 
trade-offs across all bioeconomy areas need to be carefully considered. 

Table 2. Hypothetical example of 1% market share for forest-based products in different sectors. 

In  fact,  the  bio-based  sector  does  not  only  contribute  to  growth  and  jobs  but  can  also  helps  to 
sequestrate  carbon  through  its  long-term  storage  e.g.  in  wooden  and  woody  biomass-based 
products.    Moreover,  the  circularity  and  defossilisation  of  major  economic  sectors,  including  the 
agriculture  and  food  sector,  the  chemical  industry  and  the  wooden  construction  sector,  offer 
possibilities for long-term carbon sequestration and implementation of the low carbon economy. At 
the same time, forests are vulnerable to climate change, and enhancing their resilience and adaptive 
capacity  will  be  key  to  ensuring  a  long-term  supply  of  primary  material  and  ecosystem  services.  
Moreover,  the  future  development  and  integration  of  Carbon  Capture  Storage  or  Use  (CCS/U) 
technologies  into  industrial  operations  using  biomass  may  offer  the  possibility  for  negative 
emissions, but after considerable infrastructure investments.  

The chemical and petrochemical industries are partly using biomass as raw material. An important 
driver for using biomass as raw material is the objective to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of 

113 Leading the way to a European circular bioeconomy strategy, From Science to Policy 5. European Forest Institute, 2017. 

24 

 
 
 
                                                            
this  sector  that  account  for  7%  of  greenhouse  gas  emissions  of  all  industry.114  According  to  the 
estimations of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), the total volume of organic raw 
materials used by the chemical industry in 2015 amounted to 77.7 megatonnes, of which about 10% 
(7.8 megatonnes) were renewable.115 Out of the renewable raw material, carbohydrates (sugar and 
starch),  vegetable  oils,  natural  rubber  and  bioethanol  for  ethyl  tert-butyl  ether  account  for  almost 
two-thirds  of  the  quantities.  Other  important  materials  are  animal  fats,  chemical  pulp,  tall  oil, 
glycerol and others.  

In  the  construction  sector,  greater  use  of  wood  as  a  substitute  for  more  energy-intensive  non-
renewable building material can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.116 According to a report from the 
Food  and  Agriculture  Organization  (FAO)  of  the  United  Nations117  an  analysis  of  21  studies  on 
mitigation  potential  of  wood  use  in  buildings  and  furnishing  showed  that  most  studies  concluded 
that  wood  products  have  lower  greenhouse  gas  emissions  than  alternatives  over  the  complete  life 
cycle  of  the  product  (including  use  and  disposal).  Meta-analyses  of  the  average  impact  of  using 
wood instead of concrete suggest an average reduction of 2.1 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per 1 
ton of wood products used.118 

Advances  in  bio-based  innovation  forter  the  circularity  of  the  bio-based  sector  and  the  whole 
bioeconomy  by  enablinging  the  processing  of  current  side-streams,  residues  and  wates  into 
products.  For  instance,  side  streams  of  both  wood  working  industries  and  pulp,  paper  and  board 
manufacturing  can  be  converted  into  large  number  of  new  bio-based  products  with  new 
functionalities  (e.g.  nanocellulose,  carbon  nanofibres,  adhesives,  normal  and  intelligent  textiles, 
flexible electronics, 3D printing applications). The technologies also enable biowaste and residues 
from farms and forest-based sector, from cities or from the food sector to be transformed into bio-
based products such as chemicals, organic fertilizers, biofuels and eventually heat and power, if a 
more  circular  use  is  not  possible.  The  food-processing  industries,  for  instance,  are  exploring  the 
potential of converting residues into bio-based products such as chemicals and biofuels.New and/or 
more efficient ways of biomass processing, fractionation and extraction are key to recover complex 
molecules from biomass (e.g. polymers such as cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin derivatives), for 
new  product  value  chains  and  to  avoid  the  loss  of  value  that  results  from  breaking  complex 
biomolecules  down.  Greater  value  can  also  be  generated  from  unavoidable  biological  wastes  and 
residues  by  efficient  collection,  sorting  and  conversion  technologies  and  systems,  as  well  as  via 
development of upcycling technologies for them. 

114 International Energy Agency (IEA), International Council of Chemical Associations, DECHEMA. Technology roadmap: energy and GHG reductions in the chemical 

industry via catalytic processes. Paris (France): IEA Publications; 2013. 

115 http://www.cefic.org/Policy-Centre/Innovation/Bio-economy/ 

116 The cement industry is responsible for approximately 5% of global carbon dioxide emissions. Worrell et al, CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS FROM 

THE GLOBAL CEMENT INDUSTRY, Annu. Rev. Energy Environ. 2001. 26:303–29. 

117 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5857e.pdf 

118 http://www.efi.int/files/images/publications/efi_hurmekoski_wood_construction_2017.pdf 

25 

 
 
                                                            
Multi-product  biorefineries119  can  improve  the  efficiency  of  biomass  utilisation  by  increasingly 
parallel exploitation of sideflows, reducing and/or recovering waste and residues, thereby boosting 
resource efficiency and waste prevention as well as recycling and circularity. The transformation of 
waste  and  residues  into  higher  added  value  products  will  further  link  various  sources  of  biomass 
(agri/forest-based  sector  residues;  woodworking  and  pulp  and  paper  processing  sideflows,  food 
production and household "biodegradable waste"; aquatic resources) with the production of an array 
of  products  such  as  food,  feed,  biotextiles,  biopolymers,  chemicals,  bioplastics  and  eventually 
bioenergy/biofuels,  thereby  increasing  the  value  creation,  jobs  and  competitiveness  as  well  as 
sustainability of biomass production and use as well as the value creation. As biomass is bulky and 
hence expensive to transport, these new transformation processes should ideally be located close to 
the primary production sites, hence bringing new added value generation into rural areas. 

The development and deployment of biorefineries will depend heavily on the profit margins of bio-
based  products  and  the  successful  development  and  commercialisation  of  new  technologies; 
availability of local and/or regional feedstock at competitive prices, suitable infrastructure including 
logistics,  skilled  personal,  private  and  public  support  services,  including  utility  companies 
facilitating  financing  and  permitting;  and  fostered  by  a  supportive  policy  and  regulatory  enabling 
environment. The commercialisation and large-scale deployment of the less mature technologies,120 
for  instance,  the  material  use  of  lignin  and  lignosulphonate  currently  transformed  mostly  into 
energy,  represents  a  huge  opportunity  for  e.g.  lightweight  materials  deployment,  phenol-based 
aromatics  chemistry,  for  adding  further  value  to  this  second  most  abundant  biological  resource 
beyond the current use as energy source. 

For  the  bio-based  sector  to  deliver  its  benefits  across  regions  and  actor  groups,  and  to  ensure  a 
balanced  distribution  of  its  benefits,  different  technologies  and  business  models  need  to  be 
developed,  offering  a  portfolio  of  options.  These  range  from  the  large  and/or  sophisticated 
biorefineries  to  smaller  and  simpler  facilities  with  large  replication  potential.  In  addition,  solid 
methods  for  life-cycle  assessments  need  to  be  in  place  to  ensure  high  environmental  standards 
(including resource efficiency) of processes and products in bio-based industries.  

2.2.5.

  Food systems  

Europe's food and farming system on land and sea,121 from primary production to consumption and 
disposal,  has  evolved  over  centuries  and  incorporates  highly  interlinked  national  and  even  local 
food  and  farming  systems,  embedded  into  a  global  system.  Yet  the  European  dimension  is 
important,  because  many  relevant  policies,  regulations  and  public  support  mechanisms  are  to  a 
significant  extent  determined  at  EU  level.  Both  the  European  fisheries  and  agri-food  systems  are 
characterised  by  a  high  diversity  in  terms  of  production,  scale,  intensity,  labour  input  and  supply 
chains.  The  European  agri-food  system,  in  particular,  is  based  on  a  large  number  of  small-scale 

119 A biorefinery is intended as “ an overall concept of a processing plant where biomass feedstocks are converted and extracted into a spectrum of valuable products” 

Source: US DOE, 1997, Energy, Environmental and Economics (e3) Handbook, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, 

Washington D.C. 

120 A number of projects are supporting the development of integrated biorefineries, in particular through the Bio-based Industries Joint Undertaking, BBI-JU 

(FIRST2RUN, BIOSKOH). https://www.bbi-europe.eu/ 

121 https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/food-in-a-green-light 

26 

 
 
                                                            
family-based  producers,  retailers,  and  food  service  outlets  operating  alongside  large-scale 
globalised companies.122  

Agriculture  provides  the  basis  for  food  and  other  bio-based  production  under  a  wide  range  of 
conditions. In doing so, farmers also drive development in rural areas, impact on ecological services 
and  deliver  wider  public  goods.  These  multiple  functions  are  performed  in  the  context  of  major 
demographic,  economic  and  environmental  challenges,  which  are  changing  the  landscape  of  food 
and other bio-based systems in which land-based primary production is taking place. 

The  food  and  drink  industry  is  one  of  the  largest  manufacturing  sectors  in  the  EU  in  terms  of 
employment,  turnover  and  value  added.123  Wholesalers,  transport  companies  and  retailers  play  a 
vital  role in  the  EU’s  food  system,  in  terms  of  logistics,  handling  and  distribution.  Together with 
food and beverage  consumer service enterprises (restaurants, bars, etc.), they provide about twice 
the employment of the food and drink industry.  

The largest proportion of food consumed in the EU is still produced within the EU and the majority 
of EU trade in food and drink products takes place between EU countries. The EU is a net exporter 
of food and drinks with a positive trade balance of EUR 30.1 billion.124 Europe is a net importer of 
commodities such as tropical fruits, coffee, tea, cocoa, soy products and palm oil, used as food and 
feed. The EU is also the largest importer of seafood and fish products in the world. Its capacity to 
meet the demand for fish and aquaculture products from its own waters has been around 45% since 
2008.125  

The EU agri-food system generates 60% of all biomass demand in EU.126 However, it is estimated 
that  around  88  megatonnes  of  food  are  wasted  annually  in  the  EU  –  around  20%  of  all  food 
produced, with associated costs estimated at 143 billion euros.127 The energy necessary to cultivate, 
process,  pack  and  bring  food  to  European  citizens’  tables,  accounts  for  17  %  of  the  EU's  gross 
energy  consumption,  equivalent  to  about  26  %  of  the  EU's  final  energy  consumption  in  2013.128 
Even  though  the  agricultural  sector  has  increased  its  productivity  by  nearly  9%  since  2005  while 
cutting  greenhouse  gas  emissions  by  21%  since  1990  and  reducing  fertiliser  use,  it  remains  the 
largest source of the greenhouse gases methane and nitrous oxide.129 This suggests scope for further 
use  of  renewables  and  reduced  greenhouse  gas  and  pollution  emissions,  and  for  considering 

122 http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5857e.pdf 

123 http://www.fooddrinkeurope.eu/publication/data-trends-of-the-european-food-and-drink-industry-2017/ 

124 http://www.fooddrinkeurope.eu/publication/data-trends-of-the-european-food-and-drink-industry-2017/ 

125 https://www.eumofa.eu/documents/20178/66003/EN_The+EU+fish+market_Ed+2015.pdf/4cbd01f2-cd49-4bd1-adae-8dbb773d8519 

126 https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/Final%20Report_GLOBIOM_publication.pdf 

127 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-3989_en.htm 

128 http://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC96121/ldna27247enn.pdf 

129 https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Agri-environmental_indicator_-_greenhouse_gas_emissionsemissions 

27 

 
 
 
                                                            
agriculture,  forestry,  environmental  protection  of  natural  resources  and  climate  change  in  an 
integrated manner. 

Also, marine and freshwater realms will be crucial to meet the demand for food caused by a rapidly 
growing world population. The potential for sea and ocean farming to meet this demand has been 
discussed in 2.2.3.  

In the EU today, the proportion of the population that is overweight and obese is increasing in all 
European  countries  and  among  all  age  groups,  including  pre-school  and  primary  school-aged 
children. As a consequence related public health costs are likely to rise. Dietary recommendations 
have been developed to support healthy eating habits in most European countries.130   

Research and  Innovation  investments  by  public  and  private  actors  are supporting  the  shift  from  a 
conventional consumption and mass production model to food system supporting sustainable food 
and nutrition security for all. For the agri-food system, this includes giving increased emphasis on 
principles of agroecology and the support to farming systems that make efficient use of ecosystems 
services (e.g. organic farming, mixed farming, agroforestry).131 It also calls for a more personalised 
and  customised  food  consumption  model,  while  simultaneously  improving  sustainability,  safety, 
resilience  and  resource  efficiency  of  food  production  on  land  and  sea.  These  investments  drive 
solutions in the area of personalised nutrition, smart packaging, precision agriculture or smart local 
food  systems  to  name  just  a  few.  At  the  same  time,  actors  within  the  food  system  increasingly 
acknowledge  that  they  need  to  engage  more  with  citizens  to  design  new  solutions  and  to  rebuild 
trust in the food systems.132 

The  EU  agri-food  sector  is  the  main  job  and  income  source  in  many  rural  and  remote  areas,  and 
relies  on  an  agricultural  sector  capable  of  ensuring  a  steady  supply  of  raw  materials.  European 
farming  systems  are  characterised  by  fragmented  structures  and  producer  income  levels,  which 
remain  significantly  below  income  levels  in  the  rest  of  the  economy,  and  are  facing  significant 
structural  adjustment.  Hence,  economic  viability  of  farming  and  attractiveness  to  the  younger 
generation  are  a  prerequisite  for  food  security.  New  food  and  bio-based  value  chains  offer 
additional opportunities for agricultural and forestry production and activities in the rural economy. 
Avoiding additional pressure on resources will be necessary to seize these opportunities sustainably.  

The territorial dimension of agri-food systems is also important. Rural areas, which still account as 
a  whole  for  55%  of  EU  jobs  and  46%  of  gross  value  added,133  are  going  through  a  period  of 
profound  economic,  demographic  and  institutional  transformation.  Globalisation,  decentralisation, 
urbanisation, migration trends and the emergence of new product and service markets present new 
challenges and opportunities. Despite sustained growth in rural areas, there is still a gap with urban 
and intermediate areas. Recent research has however highlighted positive trends in rural growth and 
significant variations between rural areas. Encouraging cohesion and convergence among different 
regions  is  one  of  the  EU’s  core  objectives.  Sustainable  growth  and  a  balanced  territorial 

130 http://www.fao.org/nutrition/education/food-dietary-guidelines/regions/europe/en/ 

131 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-01410-w 

132 http://etp.fooddrinkeurope.eu/news-and-publications/publications/19-strategic-research-and-innovation-agenda-2016-food-for-tomorrow-s-consumer.html 

133 Eurostat data 

28 

 
 
                                                            
development are needed to achieve the objective of “jobs, growth and investments” of the European 
Commission. Working conditions on farms and forest holdings are evolving constantly and social 
conditions in the farming sector deserve appropriate attention. 

2.2.6.

  Bioenergy 

The  European  Commission's  “Framework  Strategy  for  a  Resilient  Energy  Union  with  a  Forward-
Looking Climate Change Policy”134 aims to bring about the transition to a low-carbon, secure and 
competitive economy. The key objective of the Energy Union Strategy is to promote a transition to 
a low-carbon economy, based on lower greenhouse gas emissions, increased energy efficiency and 
renewable energies, including bioenergy. 

Bioenergy135 is by far the largest of the EU's renewable energy sources (followed by hydropower, 
wind,  solar  and  geothermal),  supplying  12%  of  the  EU  final  energy  demand,  and  having  a 
significant role for the achievement of the 2020 and 2030 energy and climate targets.136 Bioenergy 
can  have  multiple  benefits  in  terms  of  energy  security,  growth  and  jobs  creation,  particularly  in 
rural development.137 For instance, it provides the highest number of direct and indirect jobs in the 
EU of all renewable energies (489,000 in 2015). Bioenergy production is expected to play a major 
role in defossilisationdefossilisation in all scenarios of the Energy Roadmap 2050, with a potential 
contribution between 10.1 EJ and 12.6 EJ.138  

Bioenergy  can  make  a  significant  contribution  to  greenhouse  gas  emission  reductions  when 
produced sustainably and used efficiently (see 2.3 for a discussion on energy recovery from waste 
and  residues)  .139  However,  bioenergy  production  and  use  can  also  be  associated  to  unintended 
environmental impacts, which need to be effectively mitigated by regulation and good practices at 
global and corporate level. These impacts were thoroughly analysed in the Impact Assessment on 
the  Bioenergy  sustainability,140  accompanying  the  revised  Renewable  Energy  Directive141  for  the 
period after 2020.142  

Against  this  background,  the  EU  bioenergy  sustainability  framework  has  been  significantly 
reinforced under the updated Renewable Energy Directive, which final text was agreed at a political 
level between the Council and the European Parliament on 14 June 2018. For the period after 2020, 
the EU sustainability criteria will apply not only to biofuels and bioliquids but also to solid biomass 
and biogas for heat and power. The sustainability criteria applying to agriculture biomass have been 
further  strengthened  to  protect  highly  biodiverse  forest  and  soil  quality  and  soil  carbon.  Specific 

134 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52015DC0080 

135 https://www.iea.org/topics/renewables/bioenergy/ 

136 SWD(2016) 418, Part 4/4, Impact Assessment on the Sustainability of Bioenergy. In 2016, about 67% of total primary energy production of renewable energy in the 

EU-28 was generated by biomass (solid, liquid and gaseous fuels), with a share of 7.1% specifically in the transport sector.[Eurostat, last update January 2018] 

137 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211464516302755 

138 COM(2011)885, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52011DC0885 

139 EC (2014), SWD(2014)259 final, State of play on the sustainability of solid and gaseous biomass used for electricity, heating and cooling in the EU. Commission Staff 

Working Document;  

140 https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/biosustain_report_final.pdf 

141 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:02009L0028-20151005&from=EN 

142 https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/documents/1_en_impact_assessment_part4_v4_418.pdf 

29 

 
 
                                                            
new  sustainability  criteria  have  been  set  for  forest-based  biomass,  with  the  view  to  prevent 
unsustainable  harvesting  and  to  protect  forest  carbon  stocks.  In  addition,  post-2020  large 
bioelectricity installations will need to apply stringent electrical efficiency standards. Furthermore, 
national renewable energy policies will need to take due regard of the waste hierarchy principles. 
Finally,  Member  States  will  not  be  able  to  support  anymore  incineration  of  organic  waste  for 
bioenergy generation in case they are not meeting the waste separation requirements set out in the 
Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC.  

2.3.  The Bioeconomy and Circular Economy: Adding value to bio-waste, by-products 

and resource flows 

Circularity is a quintessential element of the European Commission's vision for an EU Bioeconomy. 
The  Circular  Economy  is  an  economic  system  in  which  "…the  value  of  products,  materials  and 
resources  is  maintained  in  the  economy  for  as  long  as  possible,  and  the  generation  of  waste 
minimised".143 The scopes of the Circular Economy and the Bioeconomy intersect in their common 
aim to add value to biological waste and residues. The Circular Economy aims to retain the value of 
different  kinds  of  resources  (not  only  biological)  in  the  economic  cycle  as  long  as  possible, 
including,  but  not  limited  to,  renewable  biological  resources,  focussing  on  the  way  products  and 
materials  are  designed,  produced,  used  and  disposed  of.  The  bioeconomy  encompasses  additional 
activities  other  than  those  adding  value  to  biological  waste  and  residue  streams,  such  as  the 
transformation  of  non-residual  biological  resources  into  higher  value  products  and  the  efficient 
production of renewable biological resources.144 The contribution of the bioeconomy to the circular 
economy has been assessed and recognised as very significant.145  

Biodegradable  waste  (or  biowaste)  can  be  an  important  source  of  biomass,  whose  potential 
economic  value  is  starting  to  be  recognised  by  several  sectors  (e.g.  the  agricultural,  forest-based, 
chemical  and  energy  sectors).  With  the  development  of  the  bioeconomy,  the  demand  for  these 
secondary products is likely to increase, changing the economic conditions of production. 

The  lack  of  standardised  definitions  makes  it  difficult  to  truly  assess  the  volumes  of  different 
waste146  and  residue  streams  that  are  not  currently  used  but  could  be  reasonably  mobilised. 
Globally, more than 3300 megatonnes of residual biomass are estimated to be generated annually 
out  of  the  six  most  important  crops:  barley,  maize,  rice,  soybean,  sugar  cane  and  wheat.147  In 
Europe alone, 900 megatonnes of waste paper, food, and plant material are generated every year.148  
In  the  fisheries  sector,  as  much  as  40  megatonnes  of  fish  may  be  discarded  each  year  during 
commercial fishing.149 Other estimates of the waste produced in fisheries and aquaculture include 

143 EC 2015 Closing the loop - An EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy 

144 Carus M. et al., Nova Paper #9 on bio-based economy, 2018-01, (2018) 

145 https://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/review_of_2012_eu_bes.pdf; https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/circular-economy-and-bioeconomy 

146 OECD (2018), Meeting Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Bioeconomy, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264292345-en 

147 Bentsen, N.S. et al. (2014), “Agricultural residue production and potentials for energy and materials services”, Progress in Energy and Combustion Science Vol. 40, 

Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 59-73. 

148 IEEP et al. (2014), Wasted: Europe’s Untapped Resource: An Assessment of Advanced Biofuels from Wastes & Residues, Institute for Environmental Policy et al., 

Brussels, http://europeanclimate.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/WASTED-final.pdf. 

149 http://www.seafish.org/media/Publications/SR537.pdf 

30 

 
 
                                                            
volumes  as  high  as  130  megatonnes  and  up  to  USD  50  billion  yearly  losses  as  a  result  of  poor 
management of seafood resources.150,151 In forestry, woody biomass residues, such as branches and 
tree tops, have been estimated to account for 5100 megatonnes per year globally, of which logging 
residues, branches and tree tops in EU-28 account for 87 megatonnes.152 

Every  year,  almost  300  megatonnes  of  biodegradable  household  and  household-like  wastes, 
industrial wastes and other wastes are generated in the EU and remain largely unexploited. Among 
this waste, 140 megatonnes  (90  megatonnes in dry  matter) are municipal waste.153 About 82%  of 
municipal solid waste is generated by households, the rest coming from commerce and trade, small 
businesses, yard and garden waste etc. (Eurostat, 2003). 

The legal obligations included in the Circular Economy package154 aim at increasing the availability 
of  secondary  materials  (feed  materials,  biowaste)  for  further  exploitation  through  conventional 
technologies (e.g. composting and anaerobic digestion), and very importantly, for innovative ways 
of  extracting  valuable  substances  or  molecules  before  ultimately  discarding  the  left-overs,  if 
possible  by  using  its  inherent  energy.  With  this  view,  innovation  is  expected  to  support  the 
development of markets for bio-based products by creating industrial symbiosis for feed materials 
(one  industry’s  waste  becomes  the  starting  material  for  another).  An  example  is  the  use  of  plant 
residues such as wheat straw or maize stover for bio-based materials,155 or the treatment of waste 
and residues for energy production, including the production of biogas through anaerobic digestion 
of  biowaste  and  waste  waters,  as  well  as  the  integrated  production  of  chemical  products  and 
bioenergy in biorefineries. The food processing industries are exploring the potential of recovering 
the energy contained in food residues on site, through biogas production or in dedicated combined 
heat and power plants.156 

For  biodegradable  waste,  the  implementation  of  the  requirements  laid  down  in  the  Landfill 
Directive,157 in combination with the proposed new rules to ensure separate collection of bio-waste, 
should  result  in  greater  use  of  this  resource  for  the  production  of  waste-derived  products  and 
energy. Proposed changes to the EU Fertiliser Regulation should support this trend by opening up 
the single market for waste-derived fertilisers.  

According  to  FAO,  one-third  of  food  produced  for  human  consumption  is  wasted  or  lost,  which 
amounts to about 1300 megatonnes per year, and adds 3300 megatonnes of CO2 equivalent GHGs 

150 Ghosh P. et al., International Journal of Food Science, 1, 1-22, (2016), doi: 10.1155/2016/3563478 

151 For instance, traditional processing of finfish such as Atlantic cod produces only the fillets for human consumption, but efforts are being increasingly made to 

retrieve as much value as possible by processing the remaining material (Rest Raw Materials, RRM) for human consumption. Given that in some fish, up to 70% is 

RRM (e.g. tuna), additional value could be extracted from the material other than turning it into fishmeal and fertiliser (European market Observatory for Fisheries 

and Aquaculture Products, Study on the Blue Bioeconomy, 2018). 

152 Camia et al. 2018. Joint Research Centre Science for Policy Report, doi:10.2760/181536 

153 Joint Research Centre Data 2018 

154 Such as e.g. a mandatory obligation to separately collect the biowaste by the end of 2023; higher recycling targets for wood and paper packaging waste of 30% and 

85%, respectively; and a landfill of municipal waste reduction rate of 10% by 2035 

155 Thorenz A. et al., Journal of Cleaner Production, 176, 348-359, (2018), doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.143 

156 http://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC96121/ldna27247enn.pdf 

157 Council Directive 1999/31/EC, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A31999L0031 

31 

 
 
                                                            
emitted to the planet atmosphere (third top emitter after the United States and China).158 Food waste 
is generated along the entire food system, although there is considerable uncertainty about estimates 
related to different stages, including production and processing.159 Nevertheless, the further use of 
food by-products and conversion of food waste is still limited. This is due to current limitation in its 
quantification along food supply chain, limited data on its quality and level of homogeneity, and to 
differences in national implementations of the waste legislation.  

Human  waste,  such  as  waste  recoverable  through  wastewater  treatment,  is  also  a  potentially  very 
valuable and large-scale source of energy, fertilisers and chemicals. 

The EU Circular Economy Action Plan and the EU waste hierarchy consider important to keep the 
value  of  products,  materials  and  resources  in  the  economy  for  as  long  as  possible,  and  the 
generation of waste minimised. The waste hierarchy is the cornerstone of EU policy and legislation 
on waste160 and a key to the transition to the circular economy. Its primary purpose is to establish an 
order of priority that minimises adverse environmental effects and optimises resource efficiency in 
waste prevention and management. These processes have different environmental impacts and rank 
differently  in  the  waste  hierarchy.  Where  waste-to-energy  processes  are  opted  for,  such  as  the 
common use of wood waste as a feedstock for incineration, there is a need to ensure that the most 
efficient  techniques  are  used:  this  maximises  their  contribution  to  the  EU’s  climate  and  energy 
objectives.161  In  fact,  waste-to-energy  processes  encompass  very  different  waste  treatment 
operations,  ranging  from  ‘disposal’  and  ‘recovery’  to  ‘recycling'.  For  example,  processes  such  as 
anaerobic digestion which result in the production of a biogas and of a digestate are regarded by EU 
waste legislation as a recycling operation. On the other hand, waste incineration with limited energy 
recovery  is  regarded  as  disposal.  It  is  important  to  stress  that  the  waste  hierarchy  also  broadly 
reflects the preferred environmental option: disposal, in landfills or through incineration with little 
or no energy recovery, is usually the least favourable option for reducing greenhouse gas emissions; 
conversely, waste prevention, reuse and recycling have the highest potential to reduce greenhouse 
gas emissions.  

The  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  its  accompanying  Staff  Working  Document162 
already emphasised the importance of the principle of cascading use of biomass. If it is applied as 
indicated  in  the  Directive  2015/1513,  all  while  taking  into  consideration  the  regional  and  local 
economic  and  technological  circumstances,  the  maintenance  of  the  necessary  carbon  stock  in  the 
soil and the quality of the soil and the ecosystems, the cascading principle may contribute to foster 
resource efficiency.163 The Circular Economy encourages a cascading use of renewable resources, 
with several reuse and recycling cycles, where appropriate. Generally, appropriate management of 

158 http://www.fao.org/docrep/014/mb060e/mb060e00.pdf 

159 See Fusions-project (www.eu-fusions.org/) – project funded under European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and 

demonstration under grant agreement no 311972 

160 Directive 2008/98/EC, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32008L0098 

161 COM(2017)034 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52017DC0034 

162 COM(2012)60, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A52012DC0060; SWD(2012)0011 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2012:0011:FIN 

163 DIRECTIVE (EU) 2015/1513 on certain fuels and the use of energy from renewable sources 

32 

 
 
                                                            
biomass  should  ensure  its  exploitation  towards  measures  to  stimulate  industrial  symbiosis.  While 
the conversion pathways towards added value products may exist, especially using homogenous by-
products and waste coming from agriculture, forestry-based, marine and agri-food industry sectors, 
ensuring  their  profitability  requires  both  a  techno-economic  analysis  and  that  trade-offs  are 
minimised, such as minimising environmental impacts and externalities due to logistics.164  

3 

 ACTION PLAN: LEADING THE WAY TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE, CIRCULAR 
BIOECONOMY 

In February-March 2018, the European Commission published a Roadmap for the Communication 
updating  the  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy.165  An  important  objective  of  the  public 
consultation  of  the  Roadmap  was  to  get  feedback  on  the  scope  of  the  update  and  the  proposed 
indicative lines of actions. The number of public responses received was 92, both from the public 
and private sectors, as associations as well as individuals. Overall, the responses indicated that the 
stakeholders  and  civil  society  at  large  would  welcome  the  update  of  the  European  Bioeconomy 
Strategy.  

Many  respondents  stated  that  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  the  Action  Plan  should 
further  support  strategic  Research  and  Innovation.  This  latter  is  crucial  for  providing  solutions  to 
the  challenges  of  our  time.  It  delivers  on  citizens'  priorities,  as  embodied  in  the  Sustainable 
Development Goals and in the Paris Agreement on fighting climate change,166 on growth and jobs, 
and to solve the global challenges we face today and will face tomorrow. Moreover, Research and 
Innovation  determines  the  productivity  and  competitiveness  of  our  economy:  about  two-thirds  of 
Europe's  economic  growth  over  the  last  decades  was  driven  by  innovation.167  The  2017  Review 
concludes that "a direct result of the 2012 Action Plan is the over two-fold increase in dedicated EU 
funding  for  the  bioeconomy  under  the  Horizon  2020  programme  […]  compared  to  Framework 
Programme 7 […]. This financial envelope could exceed EUR 7 billion when also considering other 
actions under Horizon 2020 which are not labelled "bioeconomy" per se and which support - in an 
indirect manner – the development of the bioeconomy." Even though given the long-term nature of 
Research  and  Innovation  only  preliminary  assessments  of  the  funding's  impact  can  currently  be 
made, the 2017 Review states that "there is already early indication that projects funded under the 
EU  Framework  Programmes  are  generating  relevant  excellent  and  multi-disciplinary  research 
[…]. Evidence from projects also shows that these are developing useful innovations aiming at for 
example  reducing  the  environmental  impact  of  food  processing,  generating  food  crops  which  are 
resource-efficient  and  high  in  protein,  generating  land-based  and  aquatic  biomass  for  bio-based 
use,  improving  underwater  observation  to  monitor  the  marine  environment,  fish  stocks  and 
pollution." 

164 Cristóbal J. et al., Bioresource Technology, 259, 244–252, (2018), doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2018.03.016 

165 https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/initiatives/ares-2018-975361_en 

166 According to the 2017 Special Eurobarometer on Climate change, 92% of EU citizens see climate change as a serious problem, and 79% of Europeans believe fighting 

climate change can boost the economy and create jobs (https://ec.europa.eu/clima/sites/clima/files/support/docs/report_2017_en.pdf). 

167 https://publications.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/0635b07f-07bb-11e7-8a35-01aa75ed71a1/language-en 

33 

 
 
                                                            
Europe’s  doubling  of  Research  and  Innovation  investment  in  the  bioeconomy  (from  EUR  1.9 
billion  in  the  7th  Framework  Programme,168  2007-2013,  to  EUR  3.85  billion  in  Horizon  2020,169 
2014-2020)  has  opened  new  pathways  and  solutions  for  sustainability.  However,  further 
mobilisation of EU and Member State Research and Innovation investments are needed to deal with 
the  coming  challenges  of  a  sustainable  bioeconomy,  and  they  could  benefit  from  increased 
synergies, partnership and leverage. Horizon 2020 is now entering its crucial last years, when the 
results  it  produced  will  be  harnessed  and  their  impact  on  European  societies  and  economies 
maximised.  Furthermore,  the  EU  Budget  for  the  Future  2021-27  foresees  that  EUR  10  billion  is 
invested for research and innovation in food, agriculture, rural development and the bioeconomy,170 
as  compared  to  the  current  EUR  3.85  billion  in  Horizon  2020  Societal  Challenge  2  (Food, 
sustainable  agriculture  and  forestry,  marine,  maritime  and  inland  waters  research,  and  the 
bioeconomy). This unprecedented level of commitment needs an equivalent level of responsibility 
in  ensuring  that  these  investments  deliver  a  sustainable  bioeconomy  across  the  EU.  These  EU 
investments will be closely co-ordinated with and ideally complemented by the European Regional 
Development Fund and similar efforts at national and regional level, as well as with the public and 
private sectors. Importantly,  the Action Plan  will promote the involvement of stakeholders across 
the  entire  value  chain  in  Research  and  Innovation  to  ensure  that  research  and  innovation  are  co-
designed with the future users of its results.  

Many  stakeholders  stated  that  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  and  the  Action  Plan  should 
further  support  training  for  a  skilled  workforce  for  all  areas  of  the  bioeconomy.  Mobilising 
investments was considered to be a crucial step. Many respondents called for better data and more 
knowledge  of  the  environmental,  social  and  economic  impacts  of  the  bioeconomy,  as  a  basis  for 
dealing with possible trade-offs. In view of the development of regional bioeconomy strategies, the 
potential  of  interregional  cooperation  was  highlighted.  Largely  emphasised  was  the  need  for 
coherence of the European Bioeconomy Strategy with other EU policies, especially in the field of 
Circular Economy, agriculture, forestry, energy and climate.  

There was consensus that raising public awareness and broadly engaging stakeholders is of utmost 
importance for the future development of the bioeconomy. Also, there was a clear indication of a 
need for a space where regular and strategic international cooperation at multi-partner level can take 
place with a focus on building policy coherence and on exploiting synergies between countries and 
regions taking into account existing mechanisms. In this respect, the European Commission has set 
up the International Bioeconomy Forum in 2017. The International Bioeconomy Forum is expected 
to develop a global policy dialogue on selected aspects of the bioeconomy through international co-
operation  for  coherent,  joint  and  impactful  delivery  of  the  world  bioeconomies  on  Sustainable 
Development  Goals,  align  research  funding  programmes  and  increase  Research  and  Innovation 
cooperation and international awareness of the central role of bioeconomy.  

168 DECISION No 1982/2006/EC, concerning the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities 

(2007-2013), 18 December 2006 

169 REGULATION (EU) No 1291/2013, establishing Horizon 2020 - the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014-2020) and repealing Decision No 

1982/2006/EC, 11 December 2013; https://ec.europa.eu/research/horizon2020/pdf/press/fact_sheet_on_horizon2020_budget.pdf 

170 COM(2018)321 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2018%3A321%3AFIN 

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The  2017  Review  also  emphasised  the  complementarity  between  the  circular  economy  and  the 
bioeconomy. However it also pointed out that the links, synergies and coherence between the two 
were not fully developed (see 2.1). The purpose of this update to the 2012 Bioeconomy Strategy is 
to address these challenges through a set of 14 concrete actions which will be launched in 2019 at 
the latest.171 These actions reflect the conclusions of the 2017 Review. 

3.1.  Strengthen and scale-up the bio-based sectors, unlock investments and markets 

The  2017  Review  concluded  that  “…Further  mobilisation  of  investments  is  still  needed,  which 
requires a stable regulatory environment” and that “…Funding of high risk investments is not well 
supported by current EU instruments”. 

Matching  the  financing  needs  of  the  EU  sustainable  bioeconomy  relies  heavily  on  private 
investment which should be extensively further mobilised.172 As an illustration, according to some 
estimates approximately 300 biorefineries will need to be deployed in Europe by 2030 in order to 
meet the growing EU market demand in this sector.173  

There are on-going efforts to map the number and location of existing biorefineries in the EU. An 
initial study identified 224 biorefineries operating in the EU at the end of 2017 and reports several 
dozens more biorefineries currently under construction.174 The raw material and main end product 
differs  according  to  location  and  market  focus.  On  the  other  hand,  work  by  the  Joint  Research 
Centre  (Figure  8)  mapped  more  than  800  facilities  producing  bio-based  products  of  which  more 
than 500 are dedicated to the production of bio-based chemicals. Discrepancies are due to different 
definitions of biorefineries being used in the respective studies. 

171           These actions will not entail any budgetary or legislative commitments for the next Commission while the concrete implementation of these actions may run 

until 2025. 

172 http://www.eib.org/attachments/pj/access_to_finance_study_on_bioeconomy_en.pdf 

173 According to BIO-TIC project, by 2030 in the EU there would be a need for 310 biorefineries: 185 2nd generation ethanol, 50 bio-based jet fuel, 30 bio-based 

chemical building block and 45 bio-based plastics (The bioeconomy enabled - A roadmap to a thriving industrial biotechnology sector in Europe (2015) 

http://www.industrialbiotech-europe.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/BIO-TIC-roadmap.pdf). A recent report of the OECD indicates that in order to make the 

industrial bioeconomy a success, the number of biorefineries, both in the United States and Europe, would have to be increased to between 300 and 400 (OECD 

(2018), Meeting Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Bioeconomy, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264292345-en). 

174 http://news.bio-based.eu/media/2017/11/17-11-27-PR-Mapping-European-Biorefineries1.pdf 

35 

 
 
 
 
                                                            
Figure 8. Biorefineries distribution in the EU as of March 2018. Purple dots indicate all biorefineries (803 in total) Blue dots indicate the 
507 biorefineries producing bio-based chemicals, yellow dots indicate the 363 biorefineries producing liquid biofuels and the green dots 
indicate the 141 biorefineries producing bio-based composites and fibres. It has to be noted that some biorefineries produce more than 
one product category and are thus shown in more than one map. Dots in lighter colour in the three last figures indicate facilities that 
are  currently  inactive  (but  not  necessarily  as  permanent  status).  Most  biorefineries  correspond  with  location  of  chemical  industry 
clusters and location of ports. Highest density of facilities is in Belgium, Netherlands and some highly industrialised regions of Germany, 
France and Italy. Source: Parisi, C. 2018. Research Brief on biorefineries distribution in the EU. Joint Research Centre. 

36 

 
 
 
 
 
 
However,  private  investors  are  often  reluctant  to  invest  in  Research  and  Innovation  bioeconomy 
projects  because  of  uncertainties  and  risks  in  terms  of  regulation  and  policy,  technology,  market 
demand as well as feedstock supply issues amongst others. For instance, a major bottleneck is the 
large  capital  expenditure  required  for  certain  bioeconomy  projects,  such  as  new  biorefineries.  To 
address these issues, a financial instrument dedicated to the bioeconomy - the Circular Bioeconomy 
Thematic Investment Platform - will be established by the European Commission, and implemented 
in  the  context  of  enhancing  synergies  and  complementarities  between  the  various  EU  funding 
schemes available for supporting innovation in the bioeconomy, such as the Common Agricultural 
Policy  (post-reform),  the  InvestEU  Programme,  the  future  European  Innovation  Council  and  the 
ETS Innovation Fund.175 

Large,  sophisticated  biorefineries  are  only  viable  under  certain  circumstances  and  in  certain 
locations and the number of actors capable of promoting and running them is limited. To achieve a 
wide  deployment  of  sustainable  bio-based  value  chains,  it  is  necessary  to  develop  in  parallel 
business models that can be replicated and adapted to a variety of locations and contexts, with lower 
levels of investment, risk and technical sophistication, which can be plugged into established food 
and bio-based value chains or to stimulate new alternatives, taking advantage of the benefits of the 
particular location (resource availability, socio-economic factors, etc.). A wider range of actors need 
to get involved, including farmers and forest owners (alone or in association), small businesses, etc. 
By operating at local / regional level, these models will also facilitate circular approaches between 
exploitations and across sectors. To achieve these objectives, small-to-medium scale solutions seem 
to  be  most  appropriate.  Innovative  organisational  models  should  also  be  developed,  to  promote 
cooperation within and outside the primary sector. 

savings, 

the  Circular  Economy, 

The  EU  bio-based  sector  needs  to  be  reinforced  to  capitalise  on  its  potential  to  contribute  to 
greenhouse  gas 
reindustrialisation  and  decentralised 
manufacturing.176 The latter is particularly important for the European wood working, pulp, paper 
and  board  and  bio-based  chemical  industry  to  stay  competitive  on  an  international  level177  by 
modernising their business models and partners, their technological basis, reducing greenhouse gas 
emissions  and  generating  more  sustainable  products  through  the  exploration  of  alternative 
sustainable  feedstock,  industrial  symbiosis  and  clean  technologies.178  In  this  context,  EU  regions 
constitute  key  actors  that  help  combining  industrial  modernisation  and  sustainability  in  a 
decentralised  manner,  and  providing  rural  jobs.  They  play  a  pivotal  role  in  keeping  the 
woodworking, pulp, paper and board and chemicals industry in Europe and boosting their growth, 
as they can support the establishment of (regional and local) innovative value chains and are best 
situated to deploy locally available feedstocks (from agriculture, agri-food, the forest-based sector, 
residual  and  side  streams,  etc.)  that  can  trigger  the  bio-based  economy.  Further,  regions  are  very 
well  placed  to  attract  investments  through  local  demonstration  or  flagship  projects  by  benefitting 

175 The ETS Innovation Fund will cover the low-carbon innovation in sectors regulated by the ETS Directive (EY) 2018/410 (Annex1), by focusing on the energy intensive 

industry, Carbon capture and storage, energy storage and innovative renewables. 

176 OECD (2018), Meeting Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Bioeconomy, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264292345-en 

177 http://fr.zone-secure.net/13451/451623/#page=1 

178 http://www.cefic.org/Documents/RESOURCES/Reports-and-Brochure/Competitiveness-of-the-European-chemical-industry-2014.pdf 

37 

 
 
                                                            
from the cohesion policy funds, thus creating jobs, economic growth and new opportunities for the 
primary sector. 

For realising the existing opportunities and scale up, the bio-based sector should have equal footing 
on market and regulatory conditions vis-à-vis the fossil-based industries. Some important messages 
from OECD on the bioeconomy policy challenges are as follows:179  

1) Bioeconomy policies have to be stable and long-term so that the private sector has the confidence 
to invest.  

2)  Removing  fossil  fuel  subsidies  and  pricing  in  the  environmental  damage  caused  by  those 
industries,  would  put  a  completely  different  complexion  on  their  economics,  and  would  create  a 
level  playing  field  for  bio-based  industries.  The  Communication  “Accelerating  Clean  Energy 
Innovation  (Nov  2016)"  indicates  that  in  2012  annual  direct  fossil-fuel  subsidies  stood  at  around 
EUR 41.9 billion, rising to EUR 300 billion when including environmental externalities.  

3) Support measures for renewable energy are reported as a problem for some industries seeking to 
process  some  forms  of  biomass  for  material  and  chemical  use.  Value  added,  employment, 
innovation  and,  in  many  cases,  the  environmental  footprint  do  speak  in  favour  of  supporting 
industrial  use  of  biomass-based  materials,  products,  and  chemicals  in  the  majority  of  economic 
sectors.  

Standards,  certification  schemes,  labels  and  public  procurement  can  serve  as  further  powerful 
instruments to  support  emerging  markets  for  innovative  products.180  According to  market studies, 
products that included declarations on the sustainability of the product grew by 7%, as opposed to 
non-declaration products which only grew by 1%.181  Despite the launch of a number of initiatives 
in  standardisation,  certification,  labelling  and  public  procurement,182  progress  on  the  issue  of  the 
voluntary  uptake  and  on  the  regulatory  framework  for  the  development  of  new  markets  for  the 
bioeconomy  has  remained  limited  in  the  European  Union.183  A  wider  application  of  available 
standards  for  bio-based  products,  e.g.,  Life  Cycle  Analysis  including  carbon  accounting  tools,  184 
sustainability  criteria,185  business-to-business  and  business-to-consumer  communication186  will 
facilitate certification and labelling. This can improve the visibility of bio-based products and help 

179 OECD (2018), Meeting Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Bioeconomy, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264292345-en 

180 http://www.biobasedeconomy.eu/projects/open-bio/; http://innprobio.innovation-procurement.org/home/ 

181 The sustainability imperative – new insights on consumer expectations, Nielsen, 2015 

182 e.g. CEN mandates, pre-normative research, EMAS, EU Ecolabel on biolubricants, organic labelling, InnProBio-project generating a toolbox and catalogue as well as 

the COSME-Project on Guidance for bio-based products in procurement including main guidance document, training material and factsheets on the innovation 

potential of various bio-based product groups; http://ec.europa.eu/growth/content/guidance-bio-based-products-procurement_en; 

https://biobasedprocurement.eu/ 

183 It is noteworthy that relevant measures are currently proposed in the Circular Economy Action Plan, for example amendments to EU waste legislation that aims to 

increase the availability of quality bio-waste, measures that facilitate industrial symbiosis, in particular to exploit plant based feed materials, and the proposal for 

the revised Fertilising Product Regulation that provide specific measures for nutrient recovery from waste. 

184 EN1676:November 2015 on Bio-Based Products Life-Cycle Assessment and CEN/TR16957:September 2016 on Bio-Based Products – Guidelines for Life-Cycle 

Inventory (LCI) for the End-of-Life Phase 

185 EN16751:April 2016 on Bio-Based Products Sustainability Criteria 

186 EN16848 on Bio-Based Products – Requirements for Business-to-Business communication of characteristics using data sheets; EN16935:May 2017 on Bio-Based 

Products – Requirements for Business-to-Consumer Communication and claims  

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with public perception and acceptance. Additionally and building upon the availability of guidance 
and  training  materials  for  bio-based  products  in  procurement  for  different  product  groups,187 
specific  requirements  promoting  bio-based  materials  and  products  could  be  included  during  the 
development of EU Ecolabel and Green Public Procurement (GPP) criteria for new or other existing 
product groups not yet addressed and further innovative procurement activities. 

The  bioeconomy  can  contribute  solving  the  problem  of  plastic  litter  in  seas  and  oceans  via  the 
support to research and innovation for the development of alternatives to fossil-based plastics and 
bioremediation  methods.  Plastic  substitutes  could 
include  bio  based,  recyclable  and/or 
biodegradable  alternatives.  In  addition,  the  development  and  promotion  of  standards  (including 
through research and innovation actions addressing marine biodegradability of bio-based products) 
and related labelling is crucial.  

This  set  of  actions  aims  to  strengthen  and  scale-up  the  bio-based  sector  to  deliver  more 
environmental benefits, value-added and job creation, by mobilising stakeholders and investments, 
and  by  supporting  the  creation  of  markets  for  novel  and  sustainable  bio-based  products  and 
processes,  including  through  existing  and  emerging  regulatory  frameworks.  It  responds  to  the 
Strategy’s objectives  of reducing the dependence on non-renewable resources,  as  well as  creating 
jobs and maintaining European competitiveness.  

  Mobilise public and private stakeholders, in research, demonstration and deployment 

3.1.1.
of sustainable, inclusive and circular bio-based solutions 

This  action  will  further  engage  with  stakeholders  (Member  States,  regional  authorities,  biomass 
primary  producers,  the private  sector  and  wider  public)  to  align  strategies  and  visions  to  further 
strengthen  and  upscale  the  bio-based  sectors  (dealing  with  bio-based  value  chains  in  e.g. 
agriculture, forestry, marine, bio-waste, food), including innovative solutions that can be deployed 
in small scale, and which are suitable for direct adoption by primary producers, either individually 
or through cooperative business models, by exploring the various instruments available, including  
under  the  EU  Research  and  Innovation  Framework  Programme,  and  also  leveraging  on  private 
funds. 

Indicators:  Number  and  financing  volume  of  bioeconomy  projects  benefitting  from  financial 
advisory support; Number of regions having adopted the Self-Assessment tool to support investment 
readiness of the EU regions; Inventory of most promising technologies and innovations; Roadmap 
of demonstration activities and outreach activities; Number of demonstration projects and publicity 
materials  and  activities;  Number  of  projects  matched  with  potential  investors;  Number  of  EC 
match-making events between projects & investors; Inclusion of the bioeconomy in the existing EC 
initiatives  on  Distributed  Ledger  Technologies  (DLTs)  /  blockchain  (H2020;  EU  Blockchain 
Observatory and Forum). 

The bio-based sector has recently experienced accelerated technological development.  

187 http://ec.europa.eu/growth/content/guidance-bio-based-products-procurement_en; https://biobasedprocurement.eu/  

39 

 
 
                                                            
The Bio-Based Industries JU  has been instrumental to kick-start the demonstration and deployment 
of a number of first of a kind biorefineries and new value chains in the EU.188  

Nevertheless,  there  is  still  a  need  to  1)  make  investment  opportunities  in  the  bio-based  economy 
more  appealing,  transparent,  secure  and  visible  vis-à-vis  investors,  in  the  view  of  mobilising 
investment  in  the  bioeconomy,  and  2)  helping  EU  regions  using  available  tools  to  evaluate  their 
investment readiness level for the production of more sustainable chemicals, including the usage of 
alternative raw materials for their production. 

To this end, this action aims at the development of a toolbox of solutions for biomass processing 
into bio-based products. It will deliver the following:  

1)  Further engagement with stakeholders, including Member States, the private sector and the 
wider  public,  to  further  align  strategies  and  visions  in  scaling  up  the  bio-based  sector, 
exploring  the  various  instruments  under  Horizon  Europe  and  leveraging  on  existing  EU-
funded initiatives and private funds. 

2)  In  respect  to  rural  small-to-medium  bio-based  solutions,  building  on  results  from  research 
and innovation, identification of technologies that are suitable to operate at small scale and 
easy to replicate and/or to adapt to local conditions, and promote demonstration activities. 
Successful  demonstration  projects  will  then  be  ready  for  deployment,  which  will  be 
supported  through  action  on  the  Strategic  Deployment  Agenda  for  food,  farming,  forestry 
and  biobased  production  in  a  circular  bioeconomy.  They  could  also  benefit  from  support 
from national or regional instruments, EU financial instruments (e.g. action 3.1.2), or feed 
into EIP-AGRI activities. (e.g. action 3.2.1) 

3)  Exploration  of  ways  to  increase  the  EU  financial  advisory  support  for  Research  and 
Innovation  bioeconomy  projects,  as  recommended  by  the  European  Investment  Bank  on 
'Access-to-finance  conditions  for  Investments  in  Bio-Based  Industries  and  the  Blue 
Economy'.189 Such financial advisory support would improve access-to-finance of projects, 
for  instance  by  helping  them  to  improve  their  bankability  and  investment-readiness, 
structuring their financing and liaising with private investors. 

4)  Exploration of the main Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLTs/blockchain) opportunities, 
challenges, barriers, potential applications and use cases in the bioeconomy sector, as well 
as raising awareness, and stimulating ideas and studies related to the DLTs possible impact 
in  the  bioeconomy.  DLTs  are  globally  drawing  significant  attention,  resources  and 
investments, and the bioeconomy sector is in a unique position to look into and benefit from 
the potential of DLTs.190 

Finally,  it  is  expected  that  investment  in  the  bioeconomy  may  benefit  from  the  clarification  for 
investors  on  which  economic  activities  can  reliably  be  considered  sustainable  for  climate  change 

188 https://www.bbi-europe.eu/ 

189 http://www.eib.org/attachments/pj/access_to_finance_study_on_bioeconomy_en.pdf  

190 https://www.wur.nl/upload_mm/d/c/0/b429c891-ab94-49c8-a309-beb9b6bba4df_2017-112%20Ge_def.pdf; 

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2017/581948/EPRS_IDA(2017)581948_EN.pdf  

40 

 
 
                                                            
and  environmental  protection  more  broadly.191  It  is  expected  that  the  outcome  of  the  European 
Commission’s  Action  Plan  on  'Financing  Sustainable  Growth'192  will  lead  amongst  others  to  a 
harmonised  EU  classification  system  (taxonomy)  of  environmental  activities,  which  will  be 
integrated into EU legislation and therefore spur investment in the bioeconomy.  

3.1.2.

  Launch of the EUR 100 million Circular Bioeconomy Thematic Investment Platform  

This  action  will  support  a  financial  instrument  dedicated  to  the  Circular  Bioeconomy  under  the 
InnovFin scheme (Horizon 2020). 

Indicators: EUR leveraged from the private sector for projects financed by the Thematic Investment 
Platform;  Number  and  financing  volume  of  bioeconomy  projects  benefitting  from  Thematic 
Investment Platform Financing. 

This  action  aims  to  tackle  the  funding  gaps  faced  by  innovative  bioeconomy  projects  in  the 
demonstration  and  commercial  development  phases  through  the  launching  of  a  new  EU  thematic 
financial instrument: the Circular Bioeconomy Thematic Investment Platform.  

The launching of this new EU thematic financial instrument follows a recommendation made in the 
InnovFin  Advisory  study  by  the  European  Investment  Bank  on  access-to-finance  conditions  for 
investments  in  two  key  areas  of  the  EU  Bioeconomy  –  the  bio-based  industries  and  the  blue 
economy.193  The  study  has  identified  gaps  in  private  capital  funding  in  these  areas  for  projects 
seeking  to  scale  up  from  pilot  to  demonstration  phases,  and  from  demonstration  to  flagship  and 
industrial-scale phases. This stems from the inherent risks of investing in innovative projects in the 
bioeconomy and the often large capital expenditure needs of such projects. Insufficient access-to-
finance  makes it difficult  for projects to reach the later development phases and might even push 
some to deploy outside the EU. 

The Circular Bioeconomy Thematic Investment Platform will aim to tackle these access-to-finance 
issues  by  de-risking  innovative  projects  vis-à-vis  private  investors,  leveraging  EU  funds  to  help 
mobilise private investment in them. In addition to the bio-based industries and the blue economy, it 
will also cover closely related sectors, such as agriculture and forestry. The deployment of funded 
projects  is  expected  to  contribute  to  the  Sustainable  Development  Goals,  as  well  as  to  the  EU 
priorities  on  climate,  the  Circular  Economy  and  sustainable  finance.  It  is  also  expected  to  help 
foster industrial, rural, coastal and offshore development, and to open new avenues for the primary 
sector, creating jobs and growth in the EU.194 

This action aims to provide funding for innovative bioeconomy projects in the demonstration and 
commercial  development  phases.  This  financial  instrument  will  be  launched  under  the  InnovFin 
scheme and will receive an already adopted EU budget of EUR 100 million from Horizon 2020.195 
It  will  focus  primarily,  but  not  exclusively,  on  innovative  circular  bioeconomy  projects.  This 

191 Millar R. et al., Nature Climate Change, 8, 1, (2018), doi: 10.1038/s41558-017-0042-4 

192 COM(2018) 97 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52018DC0097&from=EN  

193 http://www.eib.org/attachments/pj/access_to_finance_study_on_bioeconomy_en.pdf  

194 http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/data/ref/h2020/wp/2018-2020/main/h2020-wp1820-food_en.pdf 

195 Total EU funding dedicated to the financial instrument, including to its administrative costs. 

41 

 
 
                                                            
financial instrument is delivering on the Pillar III of the broader Circular Economy Finance Support 
Platform.196  

  Study and analysis of enablers and bottlenecks and provide voluntary guidance to the 

3.1.3.
deployment of bio-based innovations 

Provide, guidance, identify bottlenecks, enablers, and gaps that influence synergies and deployment 
of bio-based innovations. 

Indicators: Report on regulatory landscape delivered 

The bio-based sector has important segments (e.g. bio-based alternatives to fossil-based chemicals, 
textiles,  plastics,  composites,  etc.)  which  are  only  emerging  and  therefore  still  fragmented. 
According  to  some  experts,  regulation  and  incentives  have  not  followed  the  pace  of  the 
technological  progress.  197  Therefore,  there  is  still  a  need  to  (1)  Take  stock,  map  and  identify  the 
Research and Innovation still needed to realise the full potential of the bio-based sector; (2) Identify 
bottlenecks,  enablers,  and  gaps  that  hamper  the  market  uptake  and  industrial  exploitation  of  bio-
based innovations, including in relevant EU policy areas such as Research and Innovation, circular 
economy,  environmental  and  human  health  protection,  construction,  textiles,  plastics,  waste, 
fertilisers, CAP, Industrial Policy, etc.198 

By 2021, this action will: 

1) Map the full range of potential bio-based innovations in the agricultural, forest-based and marine 
sectors.  It  will  also  cover  the  full  range  of  bio-based  products,  such  as  those  coming  from 
woodworking, pulp, paper and board industries and advanced biorefineries; side streams and waste-
based  ones  and  how  these  can  support  circularity,  as  well  as  classical  ones  such  as  construction, 
furniture, textiles, etc.  

2)  Identify  the  research  needed  to  unlock  the  innovation  potential  in  these  areas,  Building  on 
existing reports and analyses, including process-related innovations and social innovations, as well 
as  possible enablers and  bottlenecks  to  the market uptake and industrial exploitation of bio-based 
innovations,  including  standardisation  and  labelling  gaps  and  opportunities  in  the  emerging  bio-
based sector. The objective is to provide guidance, knowledge and analysis on how to include and 
feed  bioeconomy  in  the  preparation  and  proper  implementation  of  Union  policy  initiatives,  and 
legislative and programme proposals.. 

The action will be implemented through a publicly procured service contract.  

196 http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-104_en.htm 

197 Commission Expert Group for Bio-based Products – Working Group Public Procurement of Bio-based Products – Recommendations 2016 and ANNEX 1 to the 

Recommendations 2016. The group calls for alignment of the European Bioeconomy Strategy with the EU policy framework. 

198 Commission Expert Group for Bio-based Products – Working Group Public Procurement of Bio-based Products – Recommendations 2016 and ANNEX 1 to the 

Recommendations 2016. 

42 

 
 
                                                            
  Promote and/or develop standards and emerging market-based incentives, and 
3.1.4.
improve labels applicable to bio-based products on the basis of reliable and comparable data 
on environmental and climate performance 

This action will provide support through relevant funding programmes (e.g. LIFE, Horizon or other 
programmes) to develop country-based Life Cycle Inventories, prioritising products most relevant 
for the bioeconomy. This data could be considered by the Commission in the framework of product 
policies, such as the EU Ecolabel and Green Public Procurement, and shall be compliant with the 
latest version of the Environmental Footprint methods and supporting guidance as far as products, 
services  and  organisations  are  concerned.  The  Member  States  are  called  to  contribute  to  the 
creation,  update  and maintenance of  such datasets. Furthermore,  This action will explore how to 
leverage  environmental  performance  information  to  boost  the  market  of  bio-based  products  by 
potentially integrating the Environmental Footprint methods into a wide range of relevant tools. 

Other tools, including carbon accounting, would also provide evidence on the contribution of bio-
based  products  and  services  to  lower  GHG  emissions  in  a  wide  range  of  sectors  (agriculture, 
services, SMEs, domestic sector). 

This action will therefore promote the use of existing standards and labels and  emerging market-
based incentives for bio-based products. 

Indicators:  High  quality,  Environmental  Footprint  compliant  secondary  life  cycle  inventory 
datasets  developed  for  each  EU  Member  State  on  bio-based  materials  ;  €  invested  in  the 
development of such secondary data and related projects; Development of Product Environmental 
Footprint Category Rules (PEFCRs) for product groups relevant to the bio-based economy. Uptake 
of existing standards to include elements on bio-based content 

In  order  to  boost  market  uptake  and  consumer  confidence,  it  is  necessary  to  use  multiple 
instruments,  such  as  environmental  performance  information  based  on  reliable  and  comparable 
background data in policy instruments (e.g. the EU Ecolabel and green public procurement), as well 
as standards related to bio-based products, which will ensure accountability and foster consumer’s 
trust. 

Product  policy  environmental  oriented  instruments  such  as  Green  Public  Procurement  (GPP)  and 
the  EU  Ecolabel  should  only  promote  the  increased  market  uptake  of  bio-based  products  and 
processes if they are proven to be beneficial also from an environmental perspective. One of the key 
elements in determining their potential superiority is that their life cycle environmental performance 
is better than existing alternatives. 

EU methods for measuring life cycle environmental performance in a comparable way exist: these 
are the  Product  and  Organisation  Environmental  Footprint  methods  (PEF  and  OEF,  respectively), 
adopted by the Commission in 2013.199 The methods were developed based on existing standards 
with the aim of making results comparable, reproducible and reliable. They accommodate a broader 
suite of relevant environmental performance criteria, allowing to calculate in a harmonised way 16 

199 SWD(2013)0112 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52013SC0112 

43 

 
 
                                                            
different impacts (including climate change, direct land use, water use, acidification, eutrophication 
and  resource  use,  of  a  product,  a  service  or  an  organisation  by  looking  at  the  entire  value  chain 
(from cradle to grave). The methods were field tested in collaboration with Member States, NGOs 
and 25 industry sectors, including 11 pilots related to feed and food products.200 For these product 
groups,  the  European  Commission  made  freely  available  more  than  two  thousand  Life  Cycle 
Inventory  data,  which  are  adequate  for  comparing  similar  final  products  and  are  used  in 
combination with primary data to do so.  

However,  a  wide  range of  products  is  not  covered  by  these  11  pilots,  and  the  data needed  that is 
appropriate for comparing alternatives is lacking or is not sufficiently detailed. These data need to 
be available possibly at country level and, for some impacts like water and land use, ideally even at 
regional/watershed level. These high-quality data are currently not sufficiently available in existing 
commercial databases. Furthermore, if a comparison between bio-based products and alternatives, 
mainly  fossil-based  products  is  to  be  made,  it  is  essential  that  all  the  datasets  used  are 
Environmental Footprint (EF)-compliant and Carbon Footprint compliant, in order to guarantee full 
interoperability and comparability of results.  

One recent analysis aiming at comparing the Environmental Footprint (EF) of bio-based products 
and fossil-based alternative indicates that nowadays the assessment cannot be made relying entirely 
on EF compliant data due to a partial lack of such data.201 There is also a lack of data covering the 
Indirect  Land  Use  Change  (ILUC)  effects  of  bio-based  feedstock  in  a  harmonised  manner.  The 
study also concluded that more transparent fossil-based products data would be helpful to conduct 
more reliable and transparent comparisons. The secondary data made available in the framework of 
the Environmental Footprint pilot phase covers this gap related to fossil-based products. 

As  an  additional  point,  a  proper  comparative  Environmental  Footprint  analysis  between  the 
different  alternatives  will  also  mean  in  some  cases  overcoming  some  of  the  current  limitations 
shared  by  current  life  cycle  assessment  and  other  assessment  methods202  for  example  related  to 
biotic  resource  use,  impacts  beyond  climate  change  due  to  indirect  land  use  change  (ILUC), 
toxicity,  biodegradability  or  littering.  The  Commission  should  take  action  to  overcome  these 
limitations.  

These  challenges  and  gaps  could  be  addressed  by  concerted  action  between  the  EU  and  Member 
States.  

By 2025, this action will: 

1)  Address  methodological  and  data  challenges,  through  EU  funds  such  as  LIFE,  the  Horizon 
programmes and other funding opportunities would contribute to their development. Covering these 
developments  with  EU  funds  would  also  help  to  make  them  available  for  free  to  any  user  in  the 
world, further reducing the cost of access to users and strengthening the environmental assessment 

200 For results of the Environmental Footprint pilot phase and resulting product category rules, see: 

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/eussd/smgp/PEFCR_OEFSR_en.htm#final  

201 https://www.ecologic.eu/sites/files/publication/2018/3513-top-emerging-bio-based-products.pdf 

202 EU Ecolabel on Lubricants, http://ec.europa.eu/ecat/category/en/48/grease-and-stern-tube-gre 

44 

 
 
                                                            
 
of  bio-based  products  and  their  supply  chain.  Member  States  should  contribute  to  the  creation, 
update and maintenance of such datasets. The number of datasets to be developed will depend on 
the type of bio-based products and their supply chains that will be identified as priority. Considering 
that  biomass  is  an  important  environmental  hotspot,  it  could  be  one  of  the  priorities  for  data 
development.  

2)  Propose,  whenever  relevant  and  possible,  to  consider  the  inclusion  of  specific  requirements 
promoting  bio-based  materials  and  products  during  the  development  of  EU  Ecolabel  and  GPP 
criteria for new or existing product groups, according to Environmental Footprint203 results, and in 
line with available EU standards and technical reports,204 as well as with the strategic approach for 
EU  Ecolabel  and  GPP.  The  action  will  contribute  to  the  Circular  Economy  and  potentially  to  the 
Plastics Strategy.  

3) Promote and/or develop existing standards and labels and emerging market-based incentives for 
bio-based products. 

These  combined actions will allow for the full exploration of the potential  of bio-based products, 
analyse their Environmental Footprint in comparison to alternative fossil-based products, and allow 
their promotion on markets, boosting consumer confidence and their uptake. 

  Facilitate the development of new sustainable biorefineries and confirm the type and 

3.1.5.
estimated potential  

This action will consider measures to incentivise private investment in biorefinery deployment and 
market  developments  of  bio-based  products  (including  bio-based  chemicals)  while  ensuring  the 
sustainability of biomass supply and public acceptance.  

Indicators:  Targeted  policy  measures  and  regulations  relating  to  biorefining;  Number  and 
financing volume of biorefinery investments; Outlook for biorefinery deployment in the EU; Public 
reports  on best practice; Number  of  New sustainable biorefineries;  Number  of  workshops/ events 
delivered and number of participants. 

Development of the circular local bioeconomy depends on the availability of sustainable feedstock, 
including residues and urban biowaste. Schieb et al. (2015) suggest the need to increase the number 
of biorefineries to 300-400, both in the United States and Europe, for the industrial bioeconomy to 
succeed.205  That  represents  a  very  large  investment,  most  of  which  will  need  to  come  from  the 
private  sector.206  Other  studies  estimate  that  by  2030  more  than  100  megatonnes  of  unutilised 
biomass  could  be  exploited,  assuming  that  all  market  demand  is  met  by  EU  production  of  both 
feedstock and products. In this context, our market demand is estimated to equate to a number of 

203 COM(2013)196 final, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/procedure/EN/202530; Recommendation 2013/179/EU, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32013H0179  

204 EN16751:April 2016 on Bio-Based Products – Sustainability Criteria; EN1676:November 2015 on Bio-Based Products Life-Cycle-Assessment; CEN/TR16957:September 

2016 on Bio-Based Products – Guidelines for Life-Cycle Inventory (LCI) for the End-of-Life phase. 

205 P.-A. Schieb et al. (2015), Bioreﬁnery 2030, doi 10.1007/978-3-662-47374-0_5 

206 OECD (2018), Meeting Policy Challenges for a Sustainable Bioeconomy, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264292345-en. 

45 

 
 
                                                            
biorefineries of 185 for 2nd generation ethanol, 50 for bio-based jet fuel, 30 for bio-based chemical 
building block and 45 for bio-based plastics.207 

The investment decisions for an advanced biorefinery project depend largely on the maturity of the 
technology, its inherent efficiency, the market conditions for its products and the feedstock cost and 
availability, in particular at the commercialisation stage. The public understanding and awareness of 
such investments is of key importance, and this depends on the reliability of sustainability data for 
an entire value chain including on bio-based products and their related standards (link with action 
3.1.4).  Concrete  action  to  help  public  regional  authorities  to  understand  how  to  attract  more 
chemical industry investments through a focus on use of biomass and waste to produce high value 
sustainable  chemicals  has  already  taken  place  (such  as  a  self-assessment  tool  for  sustainable 
chemical production)208 but it needs to be replicated more widely. Concretely, it is critical to ensure 
that  the  newly  established  biorefineries  are  fully in  line  with  the  objectives  of  the  environmental, 
economic  and  social  sustainability,  circular  economy  and  zero-waste  concepts  and  do  not  create 
undesired environmental pressure and societal rejection.  

By 2024, this action will  

1)  Develop  an  outlook  and  roadmap  for  the  deployment  of  biorefineries  in  Europe.  The  action 
includes  all  sources  of  biomass,  and  focuses  also  on  promotion  and  development  of  active  and 
sustainable management of natural resources, deployment of innovative technologies for conversion 
of  biomass  into  long-life  bio-based  products  and  their  use  to  increase  the  contribution  of  the 
bioeconomy to climate change mitigation and renewable transition. It includes biorefining in rural 
setting  (linking  with  action  3.2.2.ii),  to  support  the  use  of  local  renewable  resources  and  rural 
revival (link with action 3.2.1) and to help establish attractive job opportunities for both the primary 
producers and young skilled entrepreneurs in the rural territory. Furthermore, it supports lowering 
transportation  costs  of  biomass  and  can  be  expected  to  result  in  a  lower  environmental  footprint 
(e.g. low water use).209  

2) Assess ways of increasing EU policy support to biorefining via environmental, social, economic 
and  technical  aspects  of  the  bioeconomy  projects,  to  facilitate  the  deployment  of  new  sustainable 
biorefineries. It will be implemented by the European Commission taking into account input from 
biomass  value  chain  stakeholders  including  civil  society  and  will  result  in  periodic  public reports 
describing the best practice. 

207 BIO-TIC, A roadmap to a thriving industrial biotechnology sector in Europe, 2015 

208 https://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/escss 

209 e.g. the Crescentino biorefinery (using 270,000 tons biomass per year) applies 100% water recycling on all operations 

http://www.betarenewables.com/en/crescentino/here-comes-the-green-revolution 

46 

 
 
                                                            
  Research and innovation investments for the development of substitutes to fossil based 

3.1.6.
materials that are bio-based, recyclable and marine-biodegradable, and of bio-remediation 
methods by mobilising the key actors in the relevant value chains including the plastics value 
chain and to contribute to plastic-free, healthy and productive European seas and oceans 

This action will contribute to plastic-free seas and oceans by supporting Research and Innovation 
through the Framework Programme for the following interlinked aims to : i) for the development of 
substitutes to fossil-based plastics, such as in particular those that are at the same time bio-based, 
recyclable and biodegradable in the marine environment , and ii) the development of further bio-
remediation methods. 

This  action will  mobilise  the key  actors  in  the  plastics  value  chain to  support  the  development  of 
alternatives  to  fossil-based  plastics  and  new  solutions  to  plastic  waste  and  littering.  This  will 
support the implementation of the EU Plastic Strategy by industry including the Directive on Single 
Use Plastics. 

Indicators: EUR invested in relevant research and innovation projects; report from industry forum 

Worldwide,  an  estimated  10  megatonnes  of  litter,  mostly  plastics,  enter  the  seas  and  oceans  each 
year, some of it as macro-plastics, but also micro-plastics. It is estimated that only 30% stays at or 
close  to  the surface,210 and that  open ocean floating plastics  account for less than 1%  of the total 
that has reached the seas and oceans since plastic began to be produced.211 The plastics may persist 
for hundreds of years before eventually degrading completely. During this time they adsorb toxins, 
concentrating them before getting into the food chain and affecting animal and human health.  

The  plastics  pollution  in  seas  has  raised  demands  for  the  already  existing  bio-based,  mostly 
cellulose based, materials and questioned the use of excessive packaging.  

Bioeconomy can provide various options to address this fundamental problem by encouraging the 
deployment  of  already  existing  functional  substitutes  and  development  of  new  materials  and 
processes  to  ease  the  recycling  of  most  plastics  to  long  term  applications  where  the  waste 
management meets  the quality standards. In the Commission’s legislative proposal  on Single Use 
Plastics,  Art. 15 stipulates that a report shall be submitted, in a certain timeline, indicating whether 
“sufficient  scientific  and  technical  progress  has  been  made  and  criteria  or  a  standard  for 
biodegradability  in  the  marine  environment  applicable  to  single  -  use  plastic  products  within  the 
scope  of  this  directive  and  their  single-use  substitutes  have  been  developed”.  Research  and 
Innovation activities across the whole innovation chain will be essential in achieving this objective. 
Activities  will  be  underpinned  by  the  6Rs  framework:  redesign-reduce-remove-reuse-recycle-
recover. 

This action will: 

210 Marine plastic debris and microplastics: global lessons and research to inspire action and guide policy change, UNEP, 2016 

211 It is estimated that open ocean floating plastic accounts for less than 1% of the total that has reached the oceans since it began to be produced by Marine Litter Vital 

Graphics, UNEP / GRID-Arendal, 2016  

47 

 
 
 
                                                            
1)  Support  further  research  and  innovation  activities  contributing  to  the  elaboration  of  European 
(CEN)  standards  for  biodegradability  in  the  marine  environment,  in  particular  pre-  and  co-
normative research. The substitute materials should be compostable or biodegradable in the marine 
environment,  and  based  on  sustainable  production  cycles.  Furthermore,  the  Bioeconomy  can 
support the development of bio-based solutions to recycle and re-use the plastics removed from the 
oceans, seas and in-land waters. 

2) Include the development of substitutes to fossil-based plastics such as those that are at the same 
time bio-based, recyclable and marine biodegradable. 

3) Build clear synergies with the many actions related to the Circular Economy Package, the Single 
Use  Plastics  legislation,  the  Marine  Strategy  Framework  Directive,  the  Plastics  Strategy  and 
international  cooperation  schemes  and  activities,  for  example  the  EU  International  Ocean 
Governance, the Galway and Belém Statements, the BLUEMED, G7 and G20 initiatives.  

3.2.  Deploy local bioeconomies rapidly across Europe 

One  aim  of  the  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  is  to  deploy  the  bioeconomies  across  Europe  to 
ensure that the bioeconomy as a whole is a vehicle for inclusive and sustainable growth at the local 
level. This includes local development in Member States and their territories, such as their regions, 
rural areas, cities and coastal areas. 

In 2017, the Review of the European Bioeconomy Strategy concluded that “…the opportunities that 
the  bioeconomy  offers  and  the  importance  of  the  Bioeconomy  Strategy  coordination  are 
increasingly  recognised  by  EU  Member  States  and  regions.  […]  However,  there  is  still  room  for 
further  development  in  Member  States,  and  also  the  potential  contribution  of  cities  to  the 
bioeconomy remains largely unexploited.” 

A deployment agenda for sustainable food and, farming systems, forestry and bio-based production 
in  a  circular  economy  will  provide  a  long-term  vision  on  pathways  to  development  of  the 
bioeconomy and its sustainability. It will be complemented by open innovation spaces, which will 
allow, on a shorter term, integrating actors across value chains to experiment and work together on 
new  solutions  that  will  provide  enhanced  sustainability  and  circularity,  and  which  are  adapted  to 
local conditions. 

Specific areas that could benefit from deployment strategies in this context include: 

  Future proofing food and farming systems (terrestrial and aquatic) by addressing e.g. food 
waste,  losses  and  by-products  (including  nutrient  recycling),  more  food  from  the  oceans, 
with  increased  share  of  EU  aquaculture  production  and  market  uptake,  rising  levels  of 
obesity and malnutrition. 

  Exploiting the potential of bio-based innovations including in farming sectors. Develop new 
products,  processes  and  value  chains  for  bio-based  markets  as  well  as  new  avenues  for 
primary  producers  to  develop  rural  and  coastal  areas.  This  includes  high  value  added  bio-
based  chemicals  and  materials,  turning  farm-waste  and  sea-weeds  into  valuable  bio-based 
products or exploiting crop innovations materials. 

48 

 
 
  New  opportunities  arising  from  the  forestry  sector  in  view  of  replacing  less  sustainable 
resources in construction, packaging and for providing new, more sustainable innovations in 
classical sectors such as textiles, furniture and chemicals. 

  Exploiting  the  potential  of  ocean  farming  -  algae  and  other  marine  resources  -  for  a 
sustainable bioeconomy, with scaling up and market uptake of marine bio-based industries, 
as well as further integration of marine and land-based farming. 

Exploiting  the  potential  of  ocean  farming  -  algae  and  other  marine  resources  -  for  a  sustainable 
bioeconomy, with scaling up and market uptake of marine bio-based industries, as well as further 
integration of marine and land-based farming. 

The  bioeconomy  should  harness  opportunities  to  improve  its  sustainability  and  circularity,  for 
example those offered by advances in the bio-based technologies to turn residues and by-products 
into new valuable bio-based materials and energy, or to recycle nutrients. Research and innovation 
at EU and Member State level have provided important solutions in the last years that would allow 
responding adequately to these challenges and opportunities; however these are not being deployed 
as fast as it is needed.  

This set of actions aims to encourage the adoption, update and coherence of national and regional 
bioeconomy strategies throughout Europe. It equally supports the EU coastal, rural and urban areas 
in exploiting bioeconomy opportunities. It addresses the need to ensure an equitable sharing of the 
benefits  of  the  EU  bioeconomy  and  responds  to  the  Strategy’s  objective  of  creating  jobs  and 
increasing European competitiveness. It aims to support the further development of the bioeconomy 
at all levels.  

The  actions  related  to  the  Strategic  Deployment  Agenda  and  to  open  innovation  spaces  aim  at 
creating  a  framework  for  exploiting  synergies  across  the  bioeconomy  and  for  coordinating 
instruments and actors at EU, national and regional level to develop more sustainable, circular and 
resilient bioeconomies. Furthermore, activities will help to build new partnerships and cooperation 
models between the different stakeholders including citizens. 

Terrestrial and aquatic food and farming systems will be analysed as well as the exploitation of the 
potential  of  ocean  farming  and  the  market  uptake  of  innovative  marine  bio-based  products 
(cosmetics,  nutrition,  textile…),  including  by  improving  integration  of  marine-  and  land-based 
farming    into  value  chains.  Environmentally  sustainable,  resource  efficient,  competitive  maritime 
activities to increase employment and territorial cohesion in coastal communities will be supported. 
In addition, financial support will be provided to a pilot group of five EU cities to draft their urban 
circular  bioeconomy  strategies,  to  be  further  extended  in  a  longer  term  to  up  to  30  bioeconomy 
cities across Europe.  

An  EU  support  mechanism  will  be  devised  to  support  the  Member  States  that  are  developing  or 
updating their dedicated national bioeconomy strategy. Moreover, a forum will be facilitated to spur 
cooperation  and  mutual  learning  between  Member  States  that  are  planning  or  implementing  their 
dedicated national bioeconomy strategies. These actions will also respond to the need to raise public 
awareness about the opportunities presented by a sustainable bioeconomy.  

49 

 
 
All areas of the bioeconomy will require skilled professionals with specific skill sets along the value 
chains.  Education  and  training  programs  need  to  be  adjusted  and  developed  to  enable  the  labour 
force  to  gain  relevant  skills.    In  order  to  address  these  challenges,  Member  States  in  partnership 
with the EU will be called to further develop bioeconomy skills in higher and vocational education 
curricula,  including  through  EU  mechanisms  such  as  the  Sector  Skills  Alliances,  across  all  areas 
relevant  for  the  bioeconomy,  taking  into  account  their  diverse  needs  and  also  including 
entrepreneurial training.  

  A Strategic Deployment Agenda for sustainable food and farming systems, forestry 

3.2.1.
and bio-based production in a circular bioeconomy 

This  action  will,  together  with  Member  States  and  the  private  sector,  develop  a  Strategic 
Deployment  Agenda  (SDA)  for  sustainable  food  and  farming  systems,  forestry  and  bio-based 
production  in  a  circular  bioeconomy.  This  SDA  will  provide  a  coherent  framework  for  the 
deployment  of  new  knowledge,  technologies  and  practices  to  connect  these  sectors  in  a  systems 
approach in the framework of a circular, and sustainable bioeconomy.  

Indicators: Number of public and private partners participating in the development of the roadmap; 
Leverage  effect  (in  €)  outside  the  EU  R&I  Framework  Programme;  ;  Number  of  stakeholders 
participating  in  innovation  actions;  Geographic  coverage  of  innovation  actions;  Number  of 
innovative practices/technologies deployed; Impact reported by participating stakeholders 

This  action  addresses  challenges  and  opportunities  of  circular  and  sustainable  food  systems, 
primary  production  and  bio-based  sectors  in  an  integrated  manner.  It  will  provide  a  coherent 
framework  for  the  deployment  of  new  knowledge,  technologies  and  practices  to  connect  these 
sectors  in  a  systems  approach  in  the  framework  of  a  circular  and  sustainable  bioeconomy.  It  will 
look at processes and instruments and have a strategic approach to the deployment of innovations 
that is problem-oriented, that overcomes fragmentation in the landscape of research and innovation 
programming and deployment across sectors, policies and territories. 

For this purpose, by 2021 the SDA will identify instruments  and initiatives that can contribute to 
spreading knowledge and facilitating technology deployment at EU, national and regional level. At 
EU level, this may include optimising synergies between the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 
and  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy  (CFP),  and  instruments  such  as  the  European  Maritime  and 
Fisheries  Fund  (EMFF),  Horizon  2020  and  the  proposed  Horizon  Europe,  the  European 
Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and other European Structural and Investment 
Funds (ESIF). Links with other policies (e.g. education) and instruments (e.g. financial instruments) 
will  also  be  explored.  Importantly,  relevant  instruments  and  initiatives  at  national  and  regional 
levels  will  also  be  identified.  Possible  interactions  and  complementarities  will  be  analysed, 
providing a clear and complete picture of the support framework. 

Building  on  existing  platforms  and  initiatives  such  as  EIP-AGRI,  this  action  will  bring  together 
primary  producers  (agro-  and  aqua-farmers,  foresters,  fishermen),  citizens,  innovators,  educators, 
SMEs, industry, national authorities and other actors to define needs and long-term approaches [to 
systemic  challenges  and  opportunities  related  to  sustainability,  resilience  and  circularity]  that 
mobilise  knowledge,  approaches,  social  innovations  and  technologies  that  are  mature  for 

50 

 
 
deployment,  as  well  as  relevant  market  mechanisms,  investment,  and  regulations.  It  will  identify 
needs  and  propose  deployment  pathways,  which  will  combine  the  most  appropriate  means  and 
instruments and  harness synergies. It will also  support primary  producers, SMEs and other  actors 
through advisory services, platforms and guidelines.   

  Pilot actions to support local bioeconomy development (rural, coastal, urban) via 

3.2.2.
Commission instruments and programmes  

i. Unlock the high potential of the "Blue Bioeconomy" in coastal areas and islands through the Sea 
Basin Strategies, the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and the Blue Bioeconomy Forum  

This  action  will  support  the  marine  bioeconomy  through  the  “Blue  Economy  grants”  of  the 
European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and a Blue Bioeconomy Forum. Coastal development will 
be  boosted  through  the  use  of  Sea  Basin  Strategies  -  including  through  dedicated  Strategic 
Research and Innovation Agendas for the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, the Atlantic and the Baltic, 
as well as through public partnerships across European Sea Basins - to unlock the potential of the 
Blue Bioeconomy (Research and Innovation Framework Programmes). Member States and regions 
are  called  on  to  boost  sustainable  coastal  bioeconomies  through  their  Smart  Specialisation 
Strategies. 

Indicators:  Number  of  sea  basin  strategies  adopted,  implemented,  reviewed;  Number  of  relevant 
projects funded; EUR invested in relevant projects. 

The  objectives  of  this  action  are  to  support  environmentally  sustainable,  resource  efficient, 
competitive  maritime  activities  and  to  increase  employment  and  territorial  cohesion  in  coastal 
communities. 

This action aims to support the development of coastal areas and their blue bioeconomies. Coastal 
areas are at the crossroads of land, sea and air ecosystems. They are strongholds of the emerging 
offshore  economy  and  link  ocean  with  land-based  economies.  Almost  half  of  the  EU  population 
lives less than 50 km from the sea; the majority is concentrated in urban areas along the coast. In 
2011, 206 million people, or 41% of the EU population, lived in Europe's coastal regions.212 Coastal 
communities host the majority of jobs related to fishing activities, sometimes being fairly dependant 
on them.213  

However, the resilience of coastal areas has been under much stress with sea-level rise and storm 
surge  due  to  extreme  effects  of  climate  change  as  well  as  diminishing  protection  from  the  ocean 
given the progressive deterioration of coral barriers.214 

By 2024, this action will: 

1) Provide funding for the marine bioeconomy through the “Blue Economy grants” of the European 
Maritime  and  Fisheries  Fund.215  These  grants  will  finance,  among  others,  viable  solutions  to 

212 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Archive:Coastal_regions_-_population_statistics 

213 Natale F. et al., Marine Policy, 42, 245-252, (2013), doi: 10.1016/j.marpol.2013.03.018 

214 Nicholls J. et al., OECD Environment Working Papers, (2008), doi: 10.1787/011766488208 

51 

 
 
                                                            
address  pollution  at  sea,  develop  value  added  products  and  services  from  underused  biomass, 
increase the eco-friendliness of aquaculture, address the labour needs of maritime sectors and bridge 
the gap between innovative solutions and their establishment in the market. 

2) Support the creation of a Blue Bioeconomy Forum, bringing together a partnership of industry, 
public authorities, academia, and finance in order to strengthen Europe's competitive position in the 
emerging blue bioeconomy. The aim of the forum will be to develop a shared understanding of the 
current  status  of  the  emerging  blue  bioeconomy  in  Europe  and  to  collectively  identify  strategic 
developments,  market  opportunities,  appropriate  financial  assistance,  regulatory  actions  and 
research  priorities  to  advance  the  blue  bioeconomy  in  Europe.  The  forum  will  seek  to  exploit 
synergies  between  blue  bioeconomy  sectors  that  can  benefit  from  innovative  uses  of  aquatic 
biomass.  It  will  look  into  biomass  sourcing  for  novel  purposes,  such  as  animal  feed  and  feed 
additives,  food  products  (functional,  fermented  or  fried),  pharmaceuticals  or  cosmetics.  Particular 
attention is also given to using and adding value to residues for other applications (e.g. adding value 
to chitin, shells and other bioactive components). By the end of 2019, the Forum will also produce a 
pipeline  of  viable  blue  bioeconomy  projects  to  bring  them  closer  to  investments.  The  European 
Commission will organise matchmaking events under the #BlueInvest for these and other promising 
blue economy projects. 

3)  Establish,  implement  and  review  of  sea  basin  strategies  for  the  development  of  the  Blue 
Economy, which include all marine bio-based sectors. Member States and regions are encouraged 
to  boost  coastal  bioeconomies  development  through  their  Smart  Specialisation  Strategies.  Sea 
basins  strategies  will  be  implemented  including  through  dedicated  Strategic  Research  and 
Innovation Agendas for the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, the Atlantic and the Baltic, and through 
public  partnerships  across  European  Sea  Basins  (EU  Research  and  Innovation  Framework 
Programmes). Sea basin strategies are a structured framework of cooperation in relation to a given 
geographical  area,  developed  by  EU  institutions,  Member  States,  their  regions  and  where 
appropriate  third  countries  sharing  a  sea  basin.  They  take  into  account  the  geographic,  climatic, 
economic and political specificities of the sea basin. 

ii. Support the deployment of inclusive bioeconomies in rural areas through the European Rural 
Development Fund  

This  action  will  facilitate  awareness  raising,  best  practices  and  capacity  building  through 
workshops,  seminars  or  meetings  with  Member  States,  and  relevant  private  and  public 
stakeholders. This action enables Member States to incorporate the bioeconomy in their Common 
Agricultural Policy Strategic Plans in a way that adequately integrates primary producers, adding 
to  the aim of  specifically supporting the setting up of  sustainable bioeconomy businesses in  rural 
areas. 

Indicators: Initiatives to encourage Member States to invest Common Agricultural Policy funds in 
bioeconomy such as workshops, meetings with national representatives and stakeholders; Number 

215 The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund focuses on the long-term objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy for a smart, sustainable and inclusive growth over the 

2014-2020 period. It will contribute to sustainable and competitive fisheries and aquaculture, to a consistent framework for the Integrated Maritime Policy and to 

a balanced and inclusive territorial development of fisheries and aquaculture areas.  

52 

 
 
                                                                                                                                                                                                     
of events on the bioeconomy potential especially for primary producers and rural areas; Number of 
participants  to  events;  Number  of  materials  provided  to  Member  States  about  existing  good 
practices in supporting the deployment of the bioeconomy. 

The  on-going  reform  of  the  Common  Agricultural  Policy  aims,  among  other  things,  to  further 
simplify its implementation by providing more flexibility to Member States in choosing the types of 
policy interventions to include in their national Common Agricultural Policy strategic plans. In this 
framework, this action consists of streamlining good and best practices on how to better integrate 
the bioeconomy in the future national Common Agricultural Policy strategic plans to be developed 
by the Member States, using the opportunities available under the Common Agricultural Policy to 
support the development of the bioeconomy. Taking into account that several Member States do not 
yet have a national bioeconomy strategy, it is vital that awareness is raised about the opportunity to 
have a bioeconomy strategy and the importance of the bioeconomy for primary producers and rural 
areas alike. This should be complemented by more capacity building in their public administrations 
in order to translate these opportunities into effective interventions in their future national Common 
Agricultural  Policy  strategic  plans.  As  a  result  of  the  successful  implementation  of  this  action, 
Member  States  will  more  adequately  reflect  bioeconomy  in  their  future  Common  Agricultural 
Policy strategic plans, based also on information about existing good practices across the board in 
the  EU.  In  this  way  policy  coherence  will  be  achieved  by  linking  national  bioeconomy  strategies 
and national Common Agricultural Policy strategic plans. 

By 2024, this action will: 

1)  Raise  awareness  of  Member  States  about  the  importance  of  the  bioeconomy  for  rural  areas 
through  targeted  meetings  and  high-level  discussion  (e.g.  AGRI/FISH  meeting  at  the  Council  of 
Ministers). The use of Common Agricultural Policy support and financial instruments to streamline 
good practices to foster the deployment of the bioeconomy will therefore be encouraged, enabling 
primary producers and rural area to benefit from these opportunities. 

2)  Streamline  the  exchange  of  good  and  best  practices  across  EU  Member  States  public 
administration  and  other  relevant  stakeholders  through  capacity  building  events  (workshops, 
seminars, presentations). This exchange should also cover existing good practices and opportunities 
in  the  use  of  financial  instruments  as  part  of  future  Common  Agricultural  Policy  Strategic  plans, 
national schemes, and EU schemes on the bioeconomy (financed through the European Investment 
Bank).  

iii. Develop urban bioeconomies through piloting circular bioeconomy cities through Horizon 
Europe   

This  action  will  provide  support  to  a  pilot  group  of  5  up  to  10  EU  cities  to  draft  their  Urban 
Circular Bioeconomy Strategies, through a service contract. It will also support the introduction of 
a system to assess the implementation and success of each strategy.  

This action will also promote the rehabilitation of urban brownfields and stimulate the application 
of  nature-based  remediation  solutions  and  green  infrastructure  to  reduce  the  urban  pressure  on 
agricultural and forest land. The rehabilitated land could serve to install urban farms, community 
gardens,  green  infrastructure  or  bio-based  economic  activity.  This  action  will  identify  possible 

53 

 
 
implementation barriers for the use of EU funding in cooperation with national, regional and local 
authorities.  

Indicators:  Number  of  urban  bioeconomy  strategies  adopted;  Number  of  urban  bioeconomy 
strategies implemented.  

Today,  cities  produce  about  1.3  billion  tonnes  of  solid  waste  per  year.  Around  half  of  it  is 
organic.216 Urban biowaste is often perceived as a challenge for urban agendas due to its potential 
pressure on the environment and human health. At the same time, biowaste flows in cities contain 
substances that could be used for the production of bio-based products such as chemicals, plastics, 
nutrients,  etc.  The  city  of  Amsterdam  estimates  that  the  better  recycling  of  high  value  organic 
residue streams could generate EUR 150 million in added value per year, create new 1.200 jobs in 
the  long  run  and  save  600.000  tonnes  of  carbon  dioxide  per  year.217  If  Europe's  50  largest  cities 
were to copy this vision, then the scaled-up impacts could be between EUR 7.5 and 12 billion in 
economic  added  value,  between  60.000  and  100.000  new  jobs,  and  carbon  dioxide  emissions 
savings  of  30  to  50  megatonnes.  Today,  there  are  conventional  technologies  to  process  urban 
biowaste into compost and biogas, the latter mainly used as an energy carrier. There are, therefore, 
opportunities for further exploiting its potentials in a smart and innovative fashion. Furthermore, the 
EU  urban  strategies  on  sustainability  policies  (such  as  Circular  Economy,  climate  mitigation, 
renewable energy production, sustainable transport, etc.) rarely  refer to circular bioeconomy. This 
action will build on the work of the EU Urban Agendas Partnership on “regulatory obstacles and 
drivers to boost an urban circular bioeconomy”. 

In addition, the new EU regulation on waste should lead to an increase of the amount of bio-waste 
in EU cities that could be available also for biorefining. According to the new Waste Framework 
Directive,  by  31  December  2023  bio-waste  shall  either  be  separated  and  recycled  at  source  or 
collected  separately.  The  directive  aims  also  to  reduce  landfilling  and  promote  other  uses  of  this 
feedstock, including the production of materials from bio-waste. 

The 2017 Review of the Bioeconomy Strategy highlighted that there are only a few cities that have 
bioeconomy-related  priorities  in  their  policies,  despite  the  potential  of  municipal  bio-waste  for 
nutrient  recovery,  bio-based  products  and  energetic  use.  This  shortcoming  is  significant, 
considering  that  cities  and  urban  areas  now  house  more  than  70%  of  all  Europeans.218  Cities  are 
drivers of innovation and the economy but also the battleground for many of the societal challenges 
of the 21st century, as emphasised in the UN 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and the UN 
New Urban Agenda.219  

An important step in further exploiting urban biowaste is the launch and implementation of Urban 
Circular  Bioeconomy  Strategies  in  EU  cities.  These  strategies  provide  the  basis  for  the 
implementation  of  concrete  territorial  measures  contributing  to  key  EU  policies  including:  (i) 
Circular Economy and bioeconomy: preventing and reducing avoidable urban biowaste and turning 

216 http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Project_MainStream_Urban_Biocycles_2017.pdf 

217 "Circular Amsterdam: A vision and action agenda for the city and metropolitan area", Circle Economy, Fabric Tno and Gemeente Amsterdam, 2016. 

218 https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/system/files/ged/pact-of-amsterdam_en.pdf 

219https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/post2015/transformingourworld; https://unhabitat.org/new-urban-agenda-adopted-at-habitat-iii/ 

54 

 
 
                                                            
unavoidable  urban  biowaste  into  valuable  resources  management;  (ii)  Climate  change  mitigation: 
Reducing  greenhouse  gas  emissions  from  biowaste  and  capture  by  avoiding  landfilling  and 
capturing  its  carbon  in  biowaste-based  products;  (iii)  Industrial  symbiosis:  Linking  biowaste  and 
wastewater  sectors  with  others  such  as  bio-based,  chemicals,  plastics,  food  &  feed,  etc.; 
(iv) Resource  efficiency  and  security:  Turning urban  biowaste  into  valuable  substances,  including 
valuable  and  critical  materials  such  as  Nitrogen  (N),  Phosphorus  (P),  and  Potassium  (K),  (v) 
Sustainable food and nutrition security: Improving local food systems through bio-based solutions, 
such as the production of feed (and eventually food) ingredients from urban biowaste.  

Urban  circular  bioeconomy  measures,  if  adapted  and  replicated  by  other  cities,  can  multiply  the 
local  contributions  for  boosting  an  EU  Bioeconomy  with  significant  economic,  social  and 
environmental  benefits.  Furthermore,  testing  this  pilot  group  of  urban  circular  bioeconomy  cities 
can potentially open the door to future and more systemic initiatives such as an EU-wide initiative 
to directly engage cities and regions in the EU bioeconomy policies.220 The implementation of this 
action  will  take  into  account  the  cooperation  and  synergies  with  related  EU  and  international 
initiatives.  It  will  also  examine  the  synergies  and  complementarities  with  EU  funds  such  as 
URBIS.221 

Cities are the centres of the local bioeconomy, but their growth at the same time puts pressure on 
the  forests  and  the  agricultural,  and  (semi-)natural  land  that  surrounds  them.  Tackling  soil 
contamination,  which  is  mainly  a  problem  in  urban  and  heavily  industrialized  regions,  offers 
opportunities  for  the  reactivation  of  land  including  for  bio-based  economic  activity  and  for  the 
reduction of urban sprawl.       

The  availability  of  fertile  soils  and  land  is  crucial  in  the  transition  towards  a  sustainable 
bioeconomy.  Land  use  changes  in  favour  of  artificial  surfaces  and  urban  development  negatively 
affect the availability of productive land for the bioeconomy and the delivery of ecosystem services 
by the soil.  Between 2000 and 2012, the average area of land taken for development in the EU was 
with 926 km² above the 800 km2 per year for 2000–2020 that was identified in the Roadmap to a 
Resource Efficient Europe as an upper benchmark in order to stay on target to achieve the objective 
of no net land take by 2050.222 Soil sealing through artificial surfaces is not only increasing across 
the EU, it is also accelerating. While artificial areas grew by 3.7 % between 2009 and 2012, this rate 
increased to 4.0 % between 2012 and 2015, indicating an acceleration of land use change towards 
artificial and urban land use.223 It is unlikely that a drastic reduction in the rate of land take will take 
place in the near future, because key land take drivers such as urban population, economic activity 
and transport activity have been on the increase since 2012. 

220 An EU-wide initiative on urban and regional bioeconomy can provide a unique instrument to actively engage local and regional actors in the EU Bioeconomy and 

obtain their significant territorial contribution to achieve its targets. This initiative could be based on: (i) a voluntary and formal commitment by mayors or 

presidents of provinces/counties and regions to draft, launch and implement bioeconomy strategies in their territories; (ii) an interactive online free-of-charge 

website for the initiative, including a platform for exchange of information and good practices and the profiles of each signatory (presenting, for example, their 

urban bioeconomy strategies with the respective targets, action plans and implementation reports); and (iii) a system for monitoring, reporting and verification 

(MRV) to assess the implementation and achievements of the strategies' targets.  

221 http://eiah.eib.org/about/initiative-urbis.htm  

222 EEA (2017), Environmental indicator report, Urban land take briefing 

223 EEA (2017), Ecosystem coverage 

55 

 
 
                                                            
One way to reduce the rate of land take is through the redevelopment of brownfields to make better 
use  of  neglected  land.  Brownfield  sites  are  derelict  and  underused  or  even  abandoned  former 
industrial  or  commercial  sites,  which  may  have  real  or  perceived  contamination  problems. 
Redevelopment of these sites has many environmental advantages: relieving pressure on rural areas 
and greenfields, reducing the risks for environment and human health, allowing more effective use 
of natural resources and facilitating economic diversification. Brownfield redevelopment applies the 
principles of the circular economy on land-use.  

Despite  different  national  legislative  approaches  and  definitions  to  address  soil  contamination  in 
Europe, the number of contaminated sites that needs remediation in the EEA-39 was estimated to 
approximate 340.000 in 2014. About one third of these sites has been identified while only 15% has 
been remediated. The costs related to the remediation of the remaining contaminated sites are huge: 
in  40%  of  the  cases  the  cost  lies  between  50.000  and  500.000  euro  but  for  some  outliers  the 
financial  impact  can  exceed  5  million  euro.224  These  sites  are  mainly  found  in  urban  areas  of 
industrialized regions. 

Academic  research  and  pioneering  industrial  projects  already  demonstrated  the  effectiveness  of 
nature-based  solutions  that  replicate  and  simulate  the  ecosystem’s  natural  restorative  capacity  to 
solve  complex  soil  pollution.  Technologies  such  as  phytoremediation,  bioremediation  or 
phytostabilization use the ability of specific plants, fungi or bacteria to degrade, stabilize or capture 
pollutants.  A  nature-based  approach  can  replace  the  use  of  energy  intensive  and  sometimes 
environmentally  invasive  remediation  technologies  to  provide  a  cost-effective  solution  for  the 
rehabilitation of degraded land. Conversion of remediated brownfields into urban farms, bio-based 
economic  activity,  community  gardens  or  green  infrastructure  can  result  in  a  double  win  for  the 
bioeconomy:  the  nature-based  solution  delivers  biomass,  the  land  is  rehabilitated  and  the  urban 
pressure on agricultural and forest land reduces.225 
In  line  with  the  on-going  work  of  the  EU  Urban  Agenda's  Partnership  on  Circular  Economy 
(UAPCE)226 and as a concrete contribution to its Action Plan, by 2022 this action will: 

1)  Provide  financial  support  to  a  pilot  group  of  up  to  10  EU  cities  to  draft  their  Urban  Circular 
Bioeconomy Strategies.  

2)  Support  the  introduction  of  a  system  to  assess  the  implementation  of  each  strategy  and  the 
achievement of its targets as well as support the setting up and maintenance of an ad hoc website for 
presenting relevant data and information on the implementation of these strategies and facilitating 
the exchange of good practices among the policy-makers involved.  Moreover, the Member  States 
are encouraged to support the development of bioeconomy strategies at the local level (bio-regions, 
bio-cities, etc.) through the Forum mentioned in Section 2.1.2. 

224 JRC, 2014. Progress in the Management of Contaminated Sites in Europe 

225 European Commission. 2015. Towards an EU Research & Innovation Policy Agenda for Nature-Based Solutions & Re-Naturing Cities 

226 https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/circular-economy  

56 

 
 
                                                            
iv. Support pilot carbon farming initiatives through LIFE  

This action will encourage Member States to establish (on a voluntary basis) a fund to buy carbon 
credits  from  farmers  and  forest  owners  who  implement  specific  on-farm  projects  aimed  at 
increasing soil/biomass carbon sequestration and/or reducing emissions in the livestock sector or 
related to fertilizer use.  

Indicators:  Number  of  pilot  projects  on  carbon 
sectors/farmers/forest owners covered by carbon farming; Tonnes of CO2/equivalent sequestered. 

invested;  Number  of 

farming;  EUR 

Carbon  farming  would  provide  result-based  payments  to  farmers  and  forest  owners,  ensuring  a 
clearly defined public payment to the farmer for the provision of a public good by making carbon 
sequestration  and  emission  reduction  a  profitable  farming/forestry  activity.  It  would  be  highly 
visible  in  enhancing  emission  reductions,  carbon  sequestration,  resilience  and  farm  productivity 
(thanks to increased fertility). It is coherent with the Paris Agreement objective of increasing carbon 
sinks with a view to reaching a balance between emissions and removals in the second half of the 
century. 

The objectives of this action are: (1) a more effective use of natural and financial resources (2) to 
reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the life cycle of the agricultural and agro-food supply chains, 
and (3) to test innovative financial incentive schemes for farmers to take actions for reducing GHG 
emissions. 

This action will help to comply with different policies, regulations and programmes, at EU Level 
(CAP  and  climate  related  measures,  LULUCF  Regulation  (EU)2018/841,  Climate  benefits  of  the 
future Bioeconomy strategy, the EU Action Plan for a Circular Economy) and at global level (Paris 
Agreement, Global Alliance for Climate Smart Agriculture  by FAO).  

The impact of this action by 2024 will include (1) the reduction of GHG emissions, (2) the adoption 
of market-based incentives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and (3) the adoption of climate 
smart practices. 

This action could be supported from the LIFE Programme.  

v. Set-up "living labs" to develop and test place-based innovations based on ecological approaches 
and circularity in primary production and food systems 

Living  labs  will  be  set-up  and  tested  for  their  contribution  to  open,  multidisciplinary  and  multi-
stakeholder innovation in primary production on land and sea and its interfaces with bioeconomy 
value  chains  (food  and  bio-based  products).    They  will  serve  to  develop  solutions  based  on 
ecological  and  circular  approaches  and  help  the  shift  to  a  more  sustainable  and  resilient 
bioeconomy. By adapting innovations to site-specific needs and involving the relevant stakeholders, 
they will allow and facilitate their further adoption and deployment. 

Indicators:  Number  of  living  lab  pilots  established;  Number  of  stakeholders  from  primary 
production and from bioeconomy value chains (including consumers) actively involved in living lab 
activities; Number of outreach activities and solutions tested  

57 

 
 
 
As primary production (agriculture, forestry and aquatic) and value chains are becoming more and 
more  knowledge  intensive,  attention  is  turning  to  open  innovation    as  a  means  to  tap  more 
efficiently  into  various  types  of  knowledge,  promote  efficient  ways  of  cooperation  and  sharing 
experiences  between  different  players  such  as  farmers,  forest  owners,  advisors,  researchers, 
businesses,  policy-makers,  citizens.  The  interaction  between  science  and  practice  is  particularly 
relevant where a) innovations cannot be applied in a uniform manner but need to be adapted to local 
conditions  and  b)  a  thorough  understanding  of  complex  solutions  is  needed.  This  is  the  case  for 
example  in  farming  systems  such  as  agro-forestry  or  agri-aqua  farms:  they  make  use  of 
biodiversity-based  ecosystems  services,  develop  a  range  of  products  for  multiple  purposes  and 
value  chains  (food  and  bio-based  products)  and exploit  synergies  within  farms  and  across  sectors 
through the circular use of water, nutrients and biomass. 

By 2024, this action will: 
1) Develop and test living labs as place-based, local  infrastructures where multiple disciplines and 
stakeholders can exchange ideas, co-create, test and replicate solutions on different scales (e.g. from 
pilot  to  landscape).  Activities  will  be  based  on  ecological  approaches  and  circularity  in  primary 
production and their links across bioeconomy value chains (food and bio-based products).   

2) In addition to guiding new approaches in primary production and food systems, the ambition is 
that  living  labs  also  provide  spaces  where  information  and  datasets  are  integrated,  can  be  open-
accessed and mined to understand complex interactions and find solutions.   

Relevant  EU  instruments,  such  as  EIP-AGRI  and  EIT  Food,  will  help  to  connect  living  labs 
working  on  different  themes  and  in  different  locations,  support  outreach  activities  and  create  a 
dynamic network. While focusing on Europe, work will capitalise on international experiences and 
initiatives. 

  Set up an EU Bioeconomy policy support facility and a European Bioeconomy Forum 

3.2.3.
for Member States  

i)  Set up an EU policy support facility for Member States to develop and implement 
national/regional bioeconomy strategies across Europe 

This  action  will  provide  support  to  develop  and  implement  bioeconomy  strategies  across  Europe 
(Horizon  2020).  This  will  include  a  focus  on  Central  and  Eastern  Europe  through  the  BIOEAST 
initiative.  

Indicators:  Number  of  bioeconomy  strategies  adopted  under  the  BIOEAST  Initiative;  Number  of 
bioeconomy strategies adopted by Member States 

One  of  the  key  results  of  the  2012  Bioeconomy  Strategy  is  to  have  brought  the  bioeconomy 
principles and cross-cutting objectives to the attention of national and regional policy-makers. This 
is  reflected  in  the  number  of  countries  and  regions  that  have  adopted  bioeconomy  policies  since 
2012 (Figure 9). 

58 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 9. Bioeconomy strategies and other policy initiatives dedicated to the bioeconomy in the EU as of March 2018. Source: European 
Commission's Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy. 

Dedicated bioeconomy strategies or other policy initiatives exist or are being developed in many of 
the  Member  States  and  their  regions.  So  far,  seven  Member  States  have  a  dedicated  bioeconomy 
strategy  (Finland,  France,  Germany,  Ireland,  Italy,  Latvia  and  Spain)  and  six  Member  States 
(Austria, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, the Netherlands and United Kingdom) are in the process of 
developing  a  dedicated  strategy  at  national  level.227  Other  Member  States  are  involved  in  macro-

227 https://ec.europa.eu/knowledge4policy/bioeconomy/topic/policy 

59 

Administrative Boundaries: © EuroGeographics © UN-FAO © TurkstatFRESSEFIDEPLITROUKBGELPTATIEHUCZLTLVSKEENLBEHRDKSICYStatus:Dedicated Bioeconomy Strategy at national levelDedicated Bioeconomy Strategy at national level under developmentOther policy initiatives dedicated to the bioeconomyOther related strategies at national levelSource: European Commission's Knowledge Centre for BioeconomyMTLUStrategies and other policy initiativesdedicated to the bioeconomy in the EU Member States[status as of March 2018] 
 
 
                                                            
regional  bioeconomy  initiatives  (e.g.  Denmark,  Sweden)228  and  sub-national  strategies  (e.g. 
Belgium).  As  aligned  to  the  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy,  these  strategies  go  beyond 
Research  and  Innovation  and  have  been  developed  jointly  by  various  ministries  covering 
bioeconomy-relevant  policy  areas,  such  as  agriculture,  forest-based  sector,  industry,  environment, 
regional,  etc.  The  diversity  of  focus  chosen  by  the  Member  States  for  their  national  bioeconomy 
strategies indicates that there is no single "bioeconomy blueprint" to be followed. Instead there is 
rather a variety of "bioeconomies" to be developed at national and regional levels, depending on the 
type  and  form  of  biomass  available,  infrastructures,  markets,  know-how  and  investment  capacity. 
The  variety  of  "bioeconomies"  in  the  EU  and  the  diversity  of  focus  of  the  national  bioeconomy 
strategies urge for alignment of strategies and policy coherence.229  

Most  EU-15  Member  States  have  developed  or  are  developing  dedicated  national  bioeconomy 
strategies,  while  the  new  Member  States  lag  behind,  despite  their  huge  biomass  potential.230  To 
address  this  gap,  several  high-level  initiatives  call  for  more  action  at  EU,  national  and  regional 
levels, including initiatives rooted in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries such as the 
BIOEAST231  and  the  Lodz  Bioregion  and  Bioregions  declaration.232  In  particular,  the  BIOEAST 
initiative has recently set the vision and highlighted opportunities for 2030 to develop knowledge 
and cooperation based circular bioeconomies in CEE.233 As part of this initiative, 10 CEE countries 
(Bulgaria,  Croatia,  Czech  Republic,  Estonia,  Hungary,  Lithuania,  Poland,  Romania,  Slovakia, 
Slovenia)  plan  to  develop  a  dedicated  bioeconomy  strategy  or  other  national  Circular  Economy 
strategies. 

In  order  to  support  Member  States  in  developing  and  implementing  their  dedicated  bioeconomy 
strategies, this action aims to  

1)  Activate  a  support  mechanism  for  Member  States,  drawn  among  others  on  good  practices  and 
independent high-level expertise and guidance, peer reviews, and/or other customised support.  

228 http://www.norden.org/en/theme/nordic-bioeconomy 

229 Alignment and coherence of national bioeconomy strategies with the objectives of the European Bioeconomy Strategy are necessary in order to best promote the 

development of the Bioeconomy in the European Union. 

230 See, e.g. Salamon, P., Joint Research Centre Technical Report, (2017), doi: 10.2760/363389; 

https://biconsortium.eu/sites/biconsortium.eu/files/downloads/Country-Report-Poland.pdf 

231 www.bioeast.eu  

232 a) http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+REPORT+A7-2013-0201+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN; b) Council of the European Union – 

Note AGRI 115 / RECH 93 (5/3/2018): Letter from Mr Rumen PORODZANOV, President of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council, to Commissioner MOEDAS, 

Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation; c) www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2016/06/20-envi-conclusions-circular-economy; d) 

http://www.bioeconomybratislava2016.eu/; e) The Central-Eastern European Initiative for Knowledge-based Agriculture, Aquaculture and Forestry in the 

Bioeconomy – BIOEAST – is an open initiative started by the Visegrad Group Countries (http://www.bioeast.eu/); f) Annual conference on Bioeconomy "European 

Bioeconomy Congress in Lodzkie region (EBCL 2016)" organised on 6-7/10/2016, by the Lodzkie region Marshal’s Office / Poland with the support of the EC. The 

Lodz Bioregions Declaration, endorsed by 8 Polish regions, establishes closer cooperation among various Polish regions aiming to specialise in Bioeconomy. 

233 Joint Declaration of the Ministers of Agriculture of the Visegrad Group, Bulgaria, Croatia , Slovenia and the Baltic States on the Vision of the Central and Eastern 

European Initiative for Knowledge-based Agriculture, Aquaculture and Forestry in the Bioeconomy “BIOEAST”, 13 June 2018. BIOEAST (2018) Vision Paper 

http://www.bioeast.eu/article/bioeastvisionpaper23022018 

60 

 
 
                                                            
2) Increase the number of EU Member States with a dedicated bioeconomy strategy– especially in 
moderate/modest innovator234 Member States where there is not yet such a strategy.  

ii) Support a European Bioeconomy Forum of Members States implementing bioeconomy strategies 

This  action  will  facilitate  networking  of  Member  States  and  regions,  also  capitalising  on  existing 
groups, to exchange knowledge and best practices, facilitate interaction and mutual learning, and 
enhance interregional cooperation to support bioeconomy developments at national, regional and 
local level. 

This  action  will  facilitate  bioeconomy  communication  initiatives,  such  as  awareness  raising 
campaigns and debates, also at regional level in the context of its cohesion policy, by for example 
using the smart  specialisation platform. This  includes the deployment  of  a European Bioeconomy 
Network (Horizon 2020). Member States, regions and stakeholders are called on to support similar 
bioeconomy communication activities at national, regional and local level. 

Indicators:  Number  of  actions  launched  by  the  Forum  members;  Number  of  campaigns/events 
delivered; Number of stakeholders reached 

When  providing  feedback  to  the  EU  Bioeconomy  Roadmap  2018,  the  Member  States  have 
advocated for increased cooperation through networks of Member States and regions, with the aim 
to  exchange  knowledge  and  good  and  best  practices,235  facilitate  interaction  and  mutual  learning, 
and  enhance  interregional  cooperation  to  deliver  joint  actions  in  support  of  bioeconomy 
developments at national, regional and local levels.  

As  a  result,  at  the  first  meeting  of  national  bioeconomy  coordinators  organised  by  the  EC 
(16/3/2018, Brussels, 22 Member States present), the creation of a strategic mutual learning Forum 
of  Member  States  that  have  already  adopted,  or  plan  to  adopt/update  a  national  Bioeconomy 
strategy was considered useful.  

This action will: 

1) Provide a stable and operational format for networking/interaction and knowledge exchange to 

facilitate the promotion and implementation of their bioeconomy strategies;  

2) Increase the visibility and potential of the various areas of the bioeconomy in all Member States 

using existing networks and platforms; 

3) Put Member States in the driving seat to shape a concrete agenda of joint actions strengthening 

the development of the bioeconomy areas in the EU as a whole and in Member States; 

4) Act as a channel to provide recommendations to the EU for evidence-based future actions that 

take into account regional and urban aspects. 

234 European Innovation Scoreboard http://ec.europa.eu/growth/industry/innovation/facts-figures/scoreboards_en  

235 A result of the first meeting of national bioeconomy coordinators organised by the EC (16/3/2018, Brussels, 22 Member States present). 

61 

 
 
                                                            
This action will also support communication strategies to raise awareness about the environmental 
and socio-economic impacts of activities on all bioeconomy areas and for bio-based products. 

The successful transition towards the bioeconomy requires a profound transformation both on the 
supply and the demand side of the economy. On the demand side,  consumers and their behaviour 
play  a  major  role  in  this  transformation  process.  As  demonstrated  by  a  number  of  studies,236 
consumer  awareness  and  knowledge  are  important  factors  determining  responsible  consumption 
behaviour.  Additionally,  raising  awareness  is  also  important  to  accelerate  the  implementation  of 
Bioeconomy strategies at national, regional and community level, and also to allow the citizens to 
have  their  say  and  provide  their  feedback  on  bioeconomy-related  issues,  such  as  through  the  EU 
Citizens’ Initiatives tool. 

The Review of the 2012 Bioeconomy Strategy concludes that "…A number of EU-funded research 
and  innovation  projects  have  contributed  to  the  development  of  markets  for  bio-based  products 
[…],  by  addressing,  amongst  other  things,  the  development  of  standards,  awareness-raising,  and 
public  procurement."  Yet,  as  the  public  consultation  on  the  Roadmap  for  the  Communication 
updating  the  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  showed,237  increasing  public  awareness  and 
knowledge about all areas of the bioeconomy remains one a major challenge, which the European 
Commission  aims  to  address  by  supporting  communication  initiatives  to  raise  awareness  of  the 
environmental  and  socio-economic  impacts  of  the  bioeconomy  and  bio-based  products,  and  its 
benefits, such as more green jobs.  

To  this  end,  this  action  will  strengthen  the  European  Bioeconomy  Network,  i.e.  a  network  of 
projects  and  initiatives  currently  funded  by  the  European  Commission  to  promote,  communicate 
and support all bioeconomy sectors at the national, regional and local level. The projects belonging 
to  the  European  Bioeconomy  Network  will  define  a  joint  consolidated  action  plan  of 
communication  activities  to  initiate  or  reinforce  the  existing  synergies,  and  maximise  the 
opportunities to, and the impact of, promoting the bioeconomy.  

The communication activities of the European Bioeconomy Network are expected to take place at 
least yearly not only in those countries/regions which have adopted a bioeconomy strategy, but also 
in  those  where  the  bioeconomy  potential  has  not  yet  been  exploited.  The  action  will  complement 
existing  European  Platforms  (such  as  Urban  Agenda,  Circular  Economy  Platform,  and  European 
Rural Development Network), Member States networks and projects or programmes supported by 
EU funds.  

The  objective  of  this  action  is  not  only  to  share  information  and  best  practices  but  to  engage  all 
actors  to  promote  all  bioeconomy  sectors  and  bio-based  products  through  communication  and 
engagement  activities  (events  and  tailored  campaigns)  at  the  national,  regional  and  community 
level. It will build upon sectoral communication activities and will also involve engaging citizens 
through awareness-raising and education on sustainable production, consumption and lifestyles. 

236 See e.g. Buerke A. et al., Review of Managerial Science, 11, 4, 959-991, (2017), doi: 10.1007/s11846-016-0211-2; Stöckigt G. et al., Journal of Retailing and Consumer 

Services, 43, 188-199, (2018), doi: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2018.03.018. 

237 https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/initiatives/ares-2018-975361_en 

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3.2.4.

  Promote education, training and skills across the bioeconomy  

This action will support networking of education and training providers and labour market actorsi 
n  the  bioeconomy,  for  the  development  of  education  and  training  content  that  responds  to  the 
diverse  needs  of  stakeholders  and  sectors  (Horizon  2020  and  Erasmus+  Sector  Skills  Alliances). 
Member States are encouraged to integrateof dedicated curricula and training programmes in the 
bioeconomy areas in their education and training systems. 

Indicators:  Skills  intelligence  on  the  occupations  in  a  specific  sector  up-to-date  and  available; 
European occupational ‘core’ profiles reviewed and updated; as necessary new occupational core 
profiles  established;  Vocational  core  curricula  and  teaching/training  methods  updated;  as 
necessary  new  vocational  core  curricula  established;  Vocational  core  curricula  and 
teaching/training  methods  integrated  in  national  vocational  training  systems;  Number  of 
researchers  working  in  bioeconomy  relevant  training  &  education  projects;  Number  of 
networks/programmes supported (Sector Skills Alliances, CSA, EIC ecosystems). 

In 2017, the Review of the European Bioeconomy Strategy highlighted that “…whilst efforts have 
been deployed to reinforce the human capacity for the bioeconomy, the scope and level of ambition 
of  the  strategy  and  of  the  actions  implemented  have  remained  limited  (e.g.  vocational  training  is 
largely absent and needs to be addressed, so as to have a workforce equipped for the bioeconomy 
such as in the maritime sector where steps have been taken to address this issue)".  

For  instance,  the  EU  agricultural  sector  has  in  general  lower  level  of  training  and  education  than 
other economic sectors. In 2016, more than 40% of people working in the agricultural sector had at 
most  completed  a  low  level  of  education  while  this  proportion  was  18%  of  the  total  working 
population.238 Additionally, anecdotal evidence indicates that even existing levels of wood supply to 
the  forest-based  industries  will  be  difficult  if  not  impossible  to  maintain  if  the  ongoing  rate  of 
evaporation  of  skilled  but  ageing  wood-supply  personnel  (e.g.  technicians,  support  engineers, 
ground-staff) is not matched by new recruitment.239  

Beyond vocational training however, the bioeconomy job market will need all sort of professionals, 
including some that possess multidisciplinary, managerial and cross-sectoral expertise acquired in a 
higher  education  setting.  Graduates,  for  example,  who  have  an  in-depth  knowledge  in  a  certain 
domain  (e.g.  engineering,  ecology,  agronomy,  food  systems  and  food  science,  social  science, 
economy, etc.), but also an understanding of the broader bioeconomy and supporting and emerging 
fields  (information  and  communication  technology,  robotics,  remote  sensing,  new  materials,  etc.) 
are needed. 

Finally, stimulating entrepreneurship in bioeconomy will be key to foster local developments in the 
European  regions  and  cities.  As  part  of  the  Multiannual  Financial  Framework  and  the  activities 
foreseen  for  the  European  Innovation  Council,  entrepreneurship  skills  training  will  be  supported, 
such as through a potential "Bioeconomy Innovation Bootcamp" for researchers. The action should 
include practical presentations of entrepreneurial practices and new business approaches, evidence 

238 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Farmers_in_the_EU_-_statistics 

239 e.g. from CEETAR (a member of the EU Forest-based Industries Expert Group, representing also wood-harvesting contractors), http://www.ceettar.eu/ 

63 

 
 
                                                            
of  enhancing  biodiversity  and  ecosystems,  and  examples  of  positive  synergies  with  local 
communities,  Bioeconomy  and  ecosystem-based  principles,  a  study  visit  to  problem  owners 
(company, site, protected areas), and work in teams on the problem with inter and trans-disciplinary  
expertise input. 

The Skills Agenda, launched in 2016, already addresses several skills needs crucial to the bio and 
low-carbon  economy.  For  instance,  the  Digital  Skills  and  Jobs  Coalition  and  the  Blueprint  for 
Sectoral Cooperation on Skills address digital skills and green skills. Some Blueprint projects also 
provide valuable skills intelligence information from sectors relevant to the bioeconomy, including 
the maritime sector. The EU has already provided significant funding for skills in the period 2014-
2020. In particular, more than €27 billion of the European Social Fund budget has been allocated to 
"education,  training  and  vocational  training  for  skills  and  life-long  learning"  and  a  significant 
proportion of that has gone to digital skills. This represents a third of ESF resources. In the same 
period,  Erasmus+ with a budget  of €11.4 billion has  supported the development of  education and 
training. 

The  activities  proposed  under  this  action  will  deliver  further  vocational,  higher  education  and 
entrepreneurship training to upskill the next generation of bioeconomy workforce. In turn, Member 
States in partnership with the EU will be called to embed the necessary bioeconomy skills in higher 
and vocational education curricula. 

The development of skills in the agricultural sector will be fed by activities in the context of the EIP 
AGRI  and  the  development  of  Agricultural  Knowledge  and  Innovation  Systems.240  Furthermore, 
“Bioeconomy, New Technologies, and Innovation in Agriculture” will be one of the eligible sectors for 
a Blueprint Alliance to be proposed following the Erasmus+ call for 2019. 

This action will: 

1) Map personnel structures and existing skill sets, as well as those foreseen to be needed for 2030 

and 2050 in relevant bioeconomy sectors 

2) Support  subsequent  projects  under  the  Blueprint  for  Sectoral  Cooperation  on  Skills,241  with  a 
view to possibly initiating pilot training networks, e.g. as those foreseen by the “Blueprint for the 
EU  Forest-Based  Industries”.242  In  the  framework  of  the  EU  Erasmus+  programme,  calls  for 
proposals for Sector Skills Alliances implementing the  Blueprint could be launched to address 
skill mismatches and gaps across bioeconomy sectors.  

3) Deliver  up-to-date  skills  intelligence  on  the  occupations  in  bioeconomy  and  specific 
occupational  core  profiles,  based  on which  bioeconomy  vocational  core curricula and  teaching 
and  training  methods  will  be  updated  and  new  vocational  core  curricula  in  bioeconomy 
established.  

240 https://ec.europa.eu/eip/agriculture/ 

241 http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1415&langId=en 

242 SWD(2013)0343 final, http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52013SC0343 

64 

 
 
                                                            
4) Generate  a  pipeline  of 

innovators  and  by  promoting  an 
entrepreneurial  mind-set  and  culture  for  the  bioeconomy  through  the  contribution  of  the  EIT 
KICs (and, in particular, EIT Raw Materials, EIT Food, EIT Climate-KIC and EIT InnoEnergy).  

talented  entrepreneurs  and 

5) Consider  supporting  collaborative  networks,  involving  academic  educational  institutes  (Higher 
Education  Institutions)  that  have  or  are  preparing  bioeconomy  Bachelors’  degrees,  Masters’ 
degrees and / or doctoral programmes, as well as the private sector. This can help to collect and 
share best practice and to organise information for the development of bioeconomy curricula in 
higher education. 

3.3.  Understand the ecological boundaries of the bioeconomy  

The  objective  of  the  following  actions  is  to  strengthen  the  resilience  of  land  and  sea  ecosystems, 
ensuring their contribution to climate mitigation, and enhancing their biodiversity. In addition, they 
should help us move towards sustainable, circular and post-waste food systems and mobilise the full 
potential of biological resources from primary production on land and sea. Promoting connections 
between  sectors  of  the  bioeconomy,  including  the  bio-based  sector,  will  also  be  addressed.  It 
responds  to  the  need  to  operate  the  European  bioeconomy  within  the  limits  of  our  planet  and 
supports all objectives of the Strategy. 

The environment, natural resources, ecosystems and biodiversity are under severe pressure at global 
and local scale (see 2.2). It is therefore imperative that the bioeconomy is developed in a way that 
helps reduce environmental pressures, values biodiversity and contributes to enhance the provision 
of all ecosystem services. Sustaining nature’s contribution to humanity requires the maintenance of 
a  healthy  planet,  resilient  ecosystems,  an  efficient  use  of  natural  resources,  and  conservation  and 
sustainable management of biodiversity. Yet, European biodiversity is in continuous decline.  

It is therefore necessary to have at any time the required data, information, and knowledge to judge 
if the observed developments are in the right direction and to anticipate if possible actions are likely 
to promote the desired trends. 

These  actions  should  improve  the  knowledge  base  (data,  information  and  tacit  knowledge)  on  all 
areas of the bioeconomy and a forward-looking capacity (modelling, foresight exercises, scenarios), 
as  essential  elements  for  providing  the  evidence  needed  to  support  policy  makers  and  for 
underpinning  policy  coherence.  Moreover,  a  comprehensive  monitoring  is  needed  in  order  to 
provide policy makers with transparent and harmonised (across the EU and over time) descriptions 
of  status  and  trajectory  of  change  in  the  environmental,  social  and  economic  dimensions  of  the 
bioeconomy. Significant work in these fields has already been done by the European Commission 
and its advisory bodies as well as by the general research community.243 Moreover, as laid down in 
the  Action  Plan  accompanying  the  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy,  a  Bioeconomy 
Observatory  was  set  up  in  2013  by  the  Joint  Research  Centre  with  the  aim  to  provide  data  and 

243 https://ec.europa.eu/research/scar/pdf/ki-01-15-295-enn.pdf#view=fit&pagemode=none 

65 

 
 
                                                            
information  on  the  current  bioeconomy.244  In  2017  it  was  integrated  into  the  Commission's 
Knowledge  Centre  for  Bioeconomy,245  coordinated  by 
the  Joint  Research  Centre.  The 
Commission's  Knowledge  Centre  for  Bioeconomy  collects,  structures  and  makes  accessible  data 
and  information  on  the  bioeconomy  from  different  sources,  bringing  together  the  knowledge  and 
expertise needed to assess the status, progress and impact of the bioeconomy. It develops and makes 
available forward-looking tools and results of foresight exercises. These actions will respond to the 
need  to  monitor  and  communicate  progress  towards  a  sustainable  bioeconomy,  through  further 
generation and dissemination of bioeconomy knowledge. It will inform policy making and underpin 
all  the  objectives  of  the  Strategy,  as  an  enhanced  knowledge  base  is  essential  to  support  policy 
coherence(i.e. cross-sectoral and cross-policy) and achieve the bioeconomy objectives. It is crucial 
to  ensure  that  biological  resources  are  used  within  their  sustainability  thresholds  so  that  they  can 
recover  and  replenish,  and  that  ecosystems  are  not  pushed  beyond  safe  boundaries  e.g.  through 
exceeding  the  capacity  of  specific  provisioning  ecosystem  services.  Research  is  needed  on  the 
opportunities,  trade-offs  and  potential  risks  of  developing  the  bioeconomy,  in  particular  for  the 
ecosystem services and the biodiversity. Further knowledge needs to be developed on the synergies 
and trade-offs between various ecosystem services – both for terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and 
how to reconcile economic activities and social needs with sustainable management of ecosystems, 
primary  production  and  biodiversity.  This  involves  developing  knowledge  about  risks  and 
opportunities  of  working  with  biological  resources,  sustainability  thresholds  and  the  values  of 
biodiversity  (including  economic,  cultural  and  intrinsic  values).  The  development  of  innovative 
solutions, new business models and alternative value chains that are centred on biological resources, 
ecosystems  and  biodiversity,  should  be  done  with  the  participation  of  local  communities  and 
stakeholders. 

The mid-term review of the Biodiversity Strategy246 identified important knowledge and data gaps, 
in particular in marine ecosystems, ecosystems health and resilience. To understand the impact of 
the bioeconomy on land and sea we need to increase our observation, measurement, monitoring and 
reporting  capacities.  Improved  insights  and  better  data  collection  and  management  can  form  the 
basis  for  active  management  of  biological  resources  and  ecosystems  marine  environments. 
Ecosystem accounts can reflect the condition of key ecosystems, their capacity to deliver services 
sustainably, as well as their contributions to the sustainable bioeconomy.  

The  EU  and  its  Member  States  have  recently  launched  initiatives  in  order  to  contribute  to  global 
conservation  efforts  of  pollinators.247  The  bioeconomy  action  plan  can  contribute  to  these  efforts 
amongst others by: better understanding how businesses depend on pollinators and integrating this 
into  risk-management  strategies,  in  particular  for  those  higher  up  the  biomass  chain;  raising 
awareness about the importance of pollinators amongst relevant bioeconomy sectors; and promoting 

244  BISO operated as a Framework Programme 7-funded project (2013-2016) that provided a website with bioeconomy-relevant S&T, policy and market data as well 

as research on bio-based industries and environmental aspects. It was followed (2016-2017) by the Joint Research Centre institutional project-funded EU 

Bioeconomy Observatory.  

245 https://ec.europa.eu/knowledge4policy/bioeconomy 

246 COM(2015)0478 final; https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52015DC0478 

247 Commission Communication on the EU Pollinators Initiative http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/conservation/species/pollinators/index_en.htm 

66 

 
 
                                                            
their  engagement  in  improving  the  knowledge  base  and  supporting  monitoring  activities  on 
pollinators and pollination as a service.  

Recent  key  discoveries  on  microbiomes248  offer  the  potential  to  improve  primary  production  and 
food  systems,  to  protect  our  crops,  to  restore  and  better  manage  soils,  to  improve  human  and 
planetary health, and to spawn new sustainable solutions and economic opportunities for growing 
bioeconomies,  while  preserving  the  intrinsic  value  and  biodiversity  of  our  ecosystems.  Having 
recognised the key importance of microbiomes, the international community has called for a global 
initiative  on  microbiomes.249  The  International  Bioeconomy  Forum  established  by  the  European 
Commission  in  2017,  together  with  several  international  partners,  includes  a  working  group  in 
microbiomes,  which  plans  further  collaborative  activities  to  harness  the  potential  of  microbiomes 
for the sustainable bioeconomy. 

  Enhance the knowledge on the bioeconomy, including on biodiversity and ecosystems 

3.3.1.
to deploy it within safe ecological limits, and make it accessible through the Knowledge 
Centre for Bioeconomy  

i) Enhance information and the knowledge base on the bioeconomy, including sustainable biomass 
supply and demand, and forward looking, cross-sectoral assessments, and make it accessible 
through the Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy 

This action will continue to enhance the knowledge base of the bioeconomy, which will be publicly 
disseminated via its Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy (KCB). It will build on tools and methods, 
including  those  established  by  the  Joint  Research  Centre,  which  address  sustainable  biomass 
availability and also enable forward-looking policy analysis with a specific focus on sustainability 
and trade-offs (Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe Proposal). 

Indicators:  Standard  bibliographic  metrics  (incl.  number  of  articles  in  peer-reviewed  journals); 
Technical  reports  published;  Publications  shared  (incl.  through  the  Knowledge  Centre  for 
Bioeconomy and at conferences) 

Bioeconomy  as  defined  in  the  introduction  is  a  highly  complex  system  with  many  interacting 
elements and stakeholders. To which extent its potential can be realised depends on many local and 
global  factors,  including  the  impact  that  a  bioeconomic  activity  has  on  the  environment  and  the 
socio-economic system.  

To ensure that the bioeconomy operates within the planetary boundaries, first and foremost a robust 
assessment  of  the  amounts,  types,  qualities  and  impacts  of  the  sustainable  production  and  use  of 
biomass from all sources is needed. Impacts include the implications of land use (and its changes) 
on biodiversity and other essential parameter of ecosystems on land and sea, as well as on the local, 
regional  and  sometimes  global  socio-economic  systems.  In  that  context  the  competition  and 
synergies  between  bio-based  sectors  (food  and  other  bio-based)  is  of  central  importance.  A  good 

248 Microbiomes are communities of micro-organisms with their genomes that inhabit a particular environment 

249 Create a global microbiome effort. Nature 29 Oct 2015: 526, 631–634 

67 

 
 
                                                            
way  to  visualise  these  interdependencies  are  biomass  flows  that  should  include  by-products  and 
residues.  

A better understanding of the status of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, the biomass demands and 
supplies  and  their  drivers,  their  costs  and  their  associated  impacts  (economic,  environmental  and 
social), would help to better understand the synergies and potential trade-offs between the various 
uses of biomass with regard to climate change mitigation, food security, raw materials and energy 
security, natural capital conservation, cohesion, trade, environmental services, etc.  

Examining  separately  the  specific  needs  of  each  bio-based  sector  without  considering  the  whole 
bioeconomy  system  could  lead  to  wrong  conclusions.  Accumulating  needs  of  different  sectors 
without  considering  their  interactions  could  lead  to  either  overexploitation  (possibly  resulting  in 
exacerbating climate change but also in greater food insecurity and environmental degradation) or a 
sub-optimal use of available natural resources (potentially resulting in lost economic opportunities, 
as  well  as  lost  opportunities  for  climate  mitigation  and  adaptation,  substitution  of  non-renewable 
resources, etc.).  

Through the development of data, models and analyses on EU and global biomass flows and their 
sustainability, the Joint Research Centre has already contributed to the common knowledge base on 
biomass  supply  and  demand.250  The  Joint  Research  Centre  furthermore  carried  out  studies  on  the 
land-use  impacts,  direct  and  indirect,  resulting  from  increasing  demand  for  different  biomass 
feedstocks.  Even  though  data  are  lacking  in  some  areas  (waste,  bio-based  products),  significant 
progress  has  been  achieved  with  regard  to  different  supply  and  demand  scenarios  and  their 
economic, social and environmental impacts. The Joint Research Centre has also established tools 
that enable forward-looking policy analysis with a specific focus on trade-offs.251  

The aim of the modelling activities of this action is to provide the assessment and the anticipatory 
capacity needed to analyse policy scenarios and trade-offs of policy options. This will be based on 
relevant data, knowledge and intelligence generated in the JRC and from external sources, including 
through other actions in section 3.3. 

This action will: 

1) Enhance the knowledge base on EU and global biomass supply, uses and flows. 

2) Assess the environmental and socio-economic dimensions of the bioeconomy.  

3) Develop and implement modelling tools to support elaboration of scenario development that take 
into  account  interaction  of  different  policy  fields,  to  help  drive  policy  coherence  across  different 
bioeconomy sectors.  

250 Camia et al. (2018). Joint Research Centre Science for Policy Report, doi:10.2760/181536, JRC109869 

251 Sector-specific models are extended to capture in detail the impacts of increased biomass usage. In a second step, these models are connected through a modelling 

framework. The MAGNET model as described in Philippidis G. et al. (2018), Joint Research Centre Technical Report, doi:10.2760/560977, JRC111508. Includes 

various features for assessing policy coherence in the context of the bioeconomy and SDGs.  

68 

 
 
                                                            
4)  Make  this  information  available  to  EU  policymakers  and  any  other  interested  stakeholder  in  a 
transparent, tailored, concise and accessible manner through the Commission's Knowledge Centre 
for Bioeconomy. 

ii) Strengthen the understanding, resilience and status of biodiversity and terrestrial and marine 
ecosystems, including their services and related socio-economic costs and benefits, also by filling 
knowledge gaps  

Complementing  existing  work,  the  assessment  of  ecosystem  services  will  be  strengthened  and 
ecosystem  service  accounts  will  be  developed  by  the  Commission  in  partnership  with  Member 
States to reflect key bioeconomy sectors, in particular for the marine environment and the forests. 
This  will  be  complemented  by  further  knowledge  and  research  on  linkages  between  biodiversity, 
ecosystems  and  their  services,  sustainability  thresholds,  and  consequences  for  the  resilience  of 
ecosystems. 

Indicators: Number of relevant publications; Key recommendations developed; Development of key 
indicators reflecting: improvement in conservation status of species and habitats; Improvement in 
good  environmental  status  for  marine  ecosystems;  Increase  in  area  of  ecosystems  in  good 
condition;  contribution  of  Mapping  and  Assessment  of  Ecosystems  and  their  Services  (MAES); 
ecosystem  accounts  developed  in  support  of  the  bioeconomy;  Input  to  key  IPBES  and  UN 
documents and guidelines; Map and statistics of ecosystem state and change; inputs to ecosystem 
assessments and accounts 

Compared to other areas, such as waste and recycling, significantly more knowledge and data are 
still  needed  on  biodiversity  and  ecosystems.  Ecosystems  are  complex;  there  are  many  different 
ecosystem types operating at different scales; and they are difficult to measure. Yet this is an urgent 
need,  since  ecosystems  are  being  degraded  and  in  some  cases  in  danger  of  collapse.  Without 
developing  this  knowledge  base,  the  bioeconomy  could  end  up  further  putting  unsustainable 
pressures on nature, and destroying the foundations upon which it is built on.  

For  these  reasons,  significant  and  extensive  research  and  development  is  needed  on:  Real  world 
experimentation on roles of biodiversity and specific species in ecosystem functioning, reactions to 
pressures  and  ability  to  recover;  rapid  and  effective  approaches  for  measuring  ecosystems, 
biodiversity  and  resilience;  new  ways  of  working  with  nature;  Critical  behaviour  such  as  tipping 
points, degree of irreversibility or ecosystem collapse; development of key restoration parameters. 
Relationship  to  conservation  objectives;  research  on  a  range  of  ecosystems  both  land-based  and 
aquatic  /  marine  ecosystems.  Finally,  all  this  knowledge  also  needs  to  be  rendered  into  practical 
forms  for  future  policy  development  and  natural  resource  management.  This  research  and 
development should form a corner stone of this action.   

The  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  strives to  support  the implementation  of  an  ecosystem-based 
approach  to  natural  resources  management,  valuing  the  provision  of  ecosystem  services  and 
stimulate synergies and complementarities with environmental policies on protection of water, soil, 

69 

 
 
 
biodiversity  and  habitats.252  Ongoing  Commission  and  Member  States  work  on  the  Mapping  and 
Assessment  of  Ecosystems  and  their  Services  (MAES)253  and  on  ecosystem  accounting  can 
increasingly support the analysis of trade-offs and synergies amongst ecosystem services and help 
consider sustainability aspects of biomass production and of the bioeconomy. 

The  objective  of  MAES  is  to  provide  the  evidence  and  knowledge  base  on  ecosystems  and  their 
services  in  an  integrated  way  to  inform  land-  and  sea-based  policy  and  decision-making,  linking 
socio-economic systems with ecosystems via the flow of services, and through the drivers of change 
that  affects  ecosystems  either  as  a  consequence  of  using  the  service  or  as  indirect  impacts  due to 
human  activities  in  general.  It  supports  the  integration  of  ecosystems  and  their  services  into 
decision-making, and impact assessment of land and sea-related policies.  

Ecosystem accounts at EU level are being developed under the Knowledge Innovation Project on an 
Integrated  accounting  system  for  Natural  Capital  and  ecosystem  services  (KIP  INCA).  First  pilot 
ecosystem services accounts have been developed by the Joint Research Centre254 and further work 
is planned, with the intention of having a representative set of accounts by 2020. To complement 
existing work, further ecosystem accounts will be developed under this Action Plan to reflect key 
ecosystems  and  their  services,  their  capacity  to  deliver  services  sustainably,  as  well  as  their 
contributions to the bioeconomy.  

Furthermore,  the  bio-economy  can  have  large  scale  effects  at  EU  and  global  levels.  The  recent 
IPBES  report  points  to  consumption  and  production  as  one  other  greatest  threats  to  biodiversity 
next to climate change.  

IPCC assessment reports have been successful in outlining key features of risks and opportunities 
based  on  extensive  modelling  and  assessments  and  scenarios.  We  need  the  same  for  biodiversity 
and ecosystems. The World Economic Forum increasingly features biodiversity loss and ecosystem 
collapse in the lists of top global risks. The Stockholm Resilience Centre (Rockstrom et al.) places 
biosphere  integrity  alongside  climate  change  as  key  global  boundaries  that  are  already  being 
transgressed. Effects of consumption – in the EU – and production – outside the EU – of bio-based 
products  (e.g.  palm  oil,  excessive  timber  harvesting)  is  having  huge  effects  of  ecosystem 
degradation.  

Further  action  in  this  area  will  be  an  important  contribution  of  EU  knowledge  and  know-how  at 
global level, of how to tackle these issues at a global and systemic level.  

iii) Provide better data on the status and management of forest ecosystems to support the 
sustainable availability of domestic biomass resources, carbon sequestration and ecosystem 
resilience 

As  part  of  the  development  of  the  Forest  Information  System  for  Europe,  specific  sections  in  the 
system will address the data and information needs to support the sustainable development of the 

252 For instance, DG ENV is examining, through a tender study, the implementation of sustainable forest management according to the EU biodiversity strategy and the 

European Bioeconomy Strategy. 

253   http://biodiversity.europa.eu/maes 

254 Vallecillo Rodriguez, S. et al. (2018), Joint Research Centre Technical Report, doi:10.2760/619793, JRC110321. 

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bioeconomy, to support assessing the sustainable availability of domestic biomass resources in the 
context of climate change and biodiversity loss  

Indicators:  Forest  Information  System  for  Europe  (FISE)  launched;  Technical  reports  delivered; 
Solutions identified 

A large and growing number of EU and national policies draw on, or affect directly and indirectly, 
Europe's  forest  ecosystems  and  their  services.  As  the  need  for  renewable  materials  and  energy 
increases, the demand for various types, dimensions and qualities of woody biomass is on the rise 
as well.255   

There is hence a need for improved efforts to provide more accurate, frequent and harmonised data 
and  assessment  tools  on  the  status  and  management  of  forest  ecosystems  through  the  FISE,  to 
support the sustainable availability of domestic biomass resources in the context of climate change 
and  biodiversity  loss  for  Europe’s  bioeconomy.  The  FISE  therefore  needs  to  provide  a  holistic 
picture of forest ecosystems as an important part of Europe's natural capital, supporting the required 
strategic approach that cuts across sectors and policy areas.  

In particular, this action would help the European Commission and all other relevant players to a) 
analyse  economic,  social  and  environmental  impacts  of  the  future  development  of  the  EU's  and 
global  bio-based  economy  on  the  EU's  forest-based  and  related  industries;  b)  support  policy 
initiatives at EU and Member States levels to mitigate negative impacts but also enable or enhance 
positive impacts; c) identify other necessary and/or desirable enabling and/or mitigating actions and 
their  actors;  d)  inform  the  EU's  long-term  forest  growth  and  biomass  availability  scenarios  and 
assessments. 

As a basis for this, action is also needed at Member State level to support the activities of national 
forest inventories and international forest-related data surveys, so as to maintain existing data sets 
into the future and add new ones emerging, also to help service the bioeconomy and international 
data surveys, such as the annual Joint Forest Sector Questionnaire (JFSQ), carried out by Eurostat, 
together with FAO-UNECE and the International Tropical Timber Organization. 

  Increase observation, measurement, monitoring and reporting capabilities and build 
3.3.2.
an EU-wide, internationally coherent monitoring system to track economic, environmental 
and social progress towards a sustainable bioeconomy  

i) 

Increase observation, measurement, monitoring and reporting capabilities on the condition 
of biodiversity, ecosystems and ecosystem services, to underpin ecosystem conservation and 
restoration 

This  action  will  advance  observation,  measurement,  monitoring  and  reporting  capabilities  on  the 
state  and  the  condition  of  biodiversity,  ecosystems,  and  ecosystem  services  through  better  use  of 

255 https://publications.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/358c6d4b-1783-11e8-9253-01aa75ed71a1/language-en; 

http://www.efi.int/files/attachments/publications/wsctu_8_2017.pdf 

71 

 
 
 
                                                            
Copernicus  services,  Sentinel  satellite  data,  INSPIRE  in-situ  data  and  other  relevant  spatially 
explicit  data  sources.  This  will  help  to  better  detect  and  assess  trends  in  biodiversity  and 
ecosystems and progress towards restoring degraded ecosystems. Moreover, it will help provide a 
sound basis for identifying and prioritising restoration actions. 

Indicators: Map and statistics of ecosystem state and change; inputs to ecosystem assessments and 
accounts. 

There is currently a shortage of timely and comprehensive data to adequately assess the condition of 
ecosystems. It is important to have better and more timely data to be able to quantify the pressures 
(e.g. land-use change, pollution …) and measure the impact of the bioeconomy on ecosystems and 
their services (e.g. habitat fragmentation, biodiversity loss …) and how this might affect the basis 
for  economic  activities  in  the  long  term.  This  action  will  help  support  the  provision  of  timely 
spatially explicit information on the state and condition of biodiversity and ecosystems. Such action 
will help populating ecosystem accounts and may contribute to a European monitoring system for 
the bioeconomy. 

This action will be primarily built on the Copernicus program, data and services and the spatial data 
covered  by  the  INSPIRE  Directive,  2007/2/EC,  and  will  make  use  of  other  relevant  data  sources 
such  as  citizen  science  or  in  situ  monitoring  networks  managed  by  the  Member  States.  The 
objective is to strengthen geospatial intelligence capabilities to interpret satellite data to measure the 
state and condition  of biodiversity and ecosystem services in a  more timely and comprehensively 
manner, through better calibration with ground data. 

ii) Build an EU-wide, internationally coherent monitoring system to track economic, environmental 

and social progress towards a sustainable bioeconomy. 

This  action  will  develop  and  implement  a  comprehensive  bioeconomy  monitoring  framework 
covering  economic,  environmental  and  social  dimensions,  and  make  it  publicly  available  via  its 
Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy. Member States are called upon to collaborate for ensuring that 
the monitoring systems developed and used at different levels are compatible and complementary. 

Indicators: Monitoring framework and set of indicators delivered; Online interface created 

The  2017  Review  of  the  2012  European  Bioeconomy  Strategy  concluded  that  "better  monitoring 
and  assessment  frameworks  are  needed  to  assess  progress"  and  that  "new  actions  are  needed  to 
develop  relevant  indicators  and  scientific  evidence  for  policy  making,  and  to  implement  a  more 
holistic monitoring and assessment framework". 

This action will: 

1) Deliver and implement a simple and comprehensive monitoring framework, covering all aspects 
of sustainability (economic, social and environmental), with indicators building upon existing and 
emerging,  internationally  shared,  monitoring  and  assessment  frameworks.256  This  monitoring 

256 Eurostat EU SDG Monitoring Report 

https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/9234939/8-18092018-AP-EN.pdf/888b182d-f6f9-4e0d-9e48-4b4e1561333e 

72 

 
 
                                                            
framework  will  be  periodically  reviewed.  When  appropriate,  new  indicators  will  be  incorporated 
whilst ensuring continuity of the monitoring. 

2)  Present  the  monitoring  indicators  online,  in  a  visual  form,  via  the  Commission's  Knowledge 
Centre for Bioeconomy. A synthesis will be provided periodically in a dedicated report. 

The  monitoring  framework  will  be  developed  through  a  consultative  process  led  by  the  Joint 
Research  Centre  in  close  collaboration  with  Member  States,  other  Commission  services  and  key 
stakeholders.  It  will  rely  upon  data  published  and  periodically  updated  by  authoritative  statistical 
sources  and  existing  internationally  recognised  monitoring  and  reporting  frameworks.  Thus,  the 
action is not meant to imply additional reporting burdens.  

The  monitoring  framework  will  also  integrate  existing  Key  Performance  Indicators  and  other 
indicators,  including  those  used  for  monitoring  the  Sustainable  Development  Goals  in  an  EU 
context.  The  use  of  common  indicators  will  ensure  the  consistency  with  other  international 
monitoring  processes  and  allow  comparability  between  different  Member  States  and  between  EU 
and Member States level assessments.  

Knowledge  gaps  may  be  identified  resulting  in  suggestions  to  improve  existing  data  collection 
exercises, including  proposals  for new indicators to relevant statistical  sources (e.g. EUROSTAT, 
Food  and  Agriculture  Organization  of  the  United  Nations,  etc.),  and  proposal  for  new  research 
topics.  

ii) Increase monitoring of degraded land areas or land at risk of climate change impacts such as 
desertification, to underpin action for restoration of land based systems 

This action will advance spatially explicit mapping of land change primarily by using Copernicus 
services and Sentinel satellite data, and the space-borne estimation of biomass change. This action 
will put emphasis on vulnerable and degraded land (e.g. Mediterranean, Eastern Europe). 

Indicators: Maps and statistics of land change and biomass; Emissions and removals of greenhouse 
gasses. 

Landscapes  often  undergo  slow  directional  processes  of  transformation,  often  leading  to  biomass 
loss. Degraded landscapes may be particularly vulnerable to natural disturbances such as floods or 
fires,  windbreaks  which  have  increased  in  frequency  and/or  severity  due  to  climate  change  and 
continue causing higher damages to humans and infrastructure. The objectives of this action are: (1) 
a  more  effective  and  appropriate  use  of  natural  resources,  (2)  to  reduce  GHG    emissions,  (3)  to 
guide land use practices and objectively informed land use decision making, (4) to take appropriate 
actions in land management, and (5) to contribute to a uniform European monitoring system from 
Space. 

This action will: 

1) Increase knowledge by providing timely spatially explicit information on biomass and (annual) 
biomass change.  

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2) Contribute to a European monitoring system for land serving needs across various policy areas 
and as a basis for forecast and risk maps in the future. 

3)  help  to  comply  with  different  policies,  regulations  and  programmes,  at  EU  Level  (CAP  and 
climate related measures, LULUCF Regulation (EU)2018/841, INSPIRE) and at global level to land 
monitoring actions under international conventions and bodies. 

This action will be primarily built on the Copernicus program, data and services and make use of 
space-borne  satellites,  ground  segments  and  data  processing  platforms  (clouds).  Involvement  of 
Member States and private sector is needed for development of new or extended services as well as 
risk assessment and forecasting. 

3.3.3.

  Provide voluntary guidance to operate the bioeconomy within safe ecological limits  

Guidance  will  be  provided,  based  on  analysis  and  assessments  to  operationalise  knowledge  on: 
land  demand),  ecosystem  condition, 
demand  pressures  (such  as 
multifunctional  ecosystems,  services  and  productivity,  conservation,  restoration  and  ecosystem 
resilience. This will build on guidance on integrating ecosystem services into decision making.  

land  use  change  and 

Indicators:  Improved  conservation  status  of  species  and  habitats  under  the  Nature  Directives; 
Improved environmental status for marine ecosystems under MSFD; Increase in area of ecosystems 
in good condition following the MAES methodology. 

Bioeconomy  policy  and  business  need  to  operate  within  ecological  limits.  Increase  demand  from 
bioeconomy sectors will lead to increased pressure on nature if it is not properly balanced by the 
supply of sustainably produced biomass. 

Bioeconomy  needs  to  embrace  new  ways  of  working  with  nature.  Applying  knowledge  of 
ecosystems  and  services  can  lead  to  improved  productivity  and  resilience,  such  as  through  crop 
mixing that improves crop yield, resilience and reduces need for pest control. Guidance is needed 
on how to make use  of  ecosystem approaches and function rather than working  against them and 
how to work within safe ecological limits.     

Without  such  guidance  that  can  guide  bioeconomy  development  there  is  a  danger  of  augmenting 
pressures  on  ecosystems.  If  on  the  other  hand  one  can  guide  bio-economy  development  to  more 
sustainable and ecologically based approaches one can create new "win-win" scenarios.   

Guidance on integrating ecosystem services into decision making to be published this year will be 
developed under the EU Action Plan for People, Nature, and the Economy by 2022, to facilitate the 
integration of ecosystems and their services into planning and decision-making, taking into account 
the  mitigation  hierarchy  (avoid-reduce-compensate)  that  should  be  followed  in  order  to  allow 
healthy ecosystems to keep providing a range of services. 

74 

 
 
  Better integrate the benefits of biodiversity-rich ecosystems in primary production 

3.3.4.
through a specific support to agro-ecology, the development of microbiome-based solutions, 
and new tools to integrate pollinators in supply value chains   

i. Increasing the understanding of microbial biodiversity with a view to develop microbiome-based 
solutions 

This action will foster biodiversity for diverse and sustainable food and primary production systems 
focussing  on  microbial  biodiversity  in  the  context  of  agro-,  forest-  and  marine  ecosystems  and 
developing microbiome-based solutions. It will build on existing initiatives and projects such as the 
International  Bioeconomy  Forum  or  ongoing  Horizon  2020  and  national  projects.  Cooperation 
across disciplines and with stakeholders across sectors and borders will be sought. 

Indicators:  Roadmap  development,  number  of  EU  R&I  projects  on  microbiomes;  Number  of 
international  partners  in  EU  R&I  microbiomes  projects  (development  of  an  R&I  community); 
Enlargement  of  the  IBF  partners  (consolidation  of  networks);  Establishment  of  test  cases  for 
practices in primary production which make use of benefits from microbial diversity; EUR invested 
in relevant research projects; Number of relevant research projects 

The  microbiome  is  commonly  defined  as  a  community  of  microorganisms  (e.g.  bacteria,  fungi, 
viruses) and their genomes that inhabit a particular environment (e.g. body, plants and animals, soil, 
water).  Even  though  current  knowledge  on  existing  microbiomes  is  limited,  unravelling  their 
complexity  offers  enormous  potential  for  finding  sustainable  ways  to manage  our  planet,  develop 
bioeconomy  potential,  understand  and  preserve  biodiversity  in  natural  systems  and  primary 
production,  and  address  multiple  Sustainable  Development  Goals.  The  resulting  knowledge, 
discoveries  and  enabling  technologies  and  practices  can  help  to  develop  applications  within  or 
across  human,  plants  and  animal  health,  food  production,  consumption  and  safety,  and  the 
environment—all contributing to robust and sustainable bioeconomies while preserving the intrinsic 
value and biodiversity of our terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.257  

The scientific community has logged the difficulties and dimensions of the challenge and has called 
for an interdisciplinary international initiative258 to complement ongoing efforts.259  

This action will: 

1)  Promote  coordination,  exchange  of  practices  and  Research  and  Innovation  in  this  domain, 
thereby  contributing  to  sustainable  food  system  transformation.  Activities  will  furthermore 
contribute to biodiversity-rich practices in primary production. The active participation of Member 
States,  International  partners,  Industry,  Academia,  farming,  forestry,  fisheries,  NGOs  and  other 
relevant stakeholders will be sought.  

257 http://mbio.asm.org/content/7/3/e00714-16.full 

258 A unified initiative to harness Earth's microbiomes. Science 30 Oct 2015: 507-508; Create a global microbiome effort. Nature 29 Oct 2015: 526, 631–634  

259 http://www.earthmicrobiome.org/ 

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2) Promote coordination with existing Horizon 2020, microbiome consortia and national initiatives 
and cross-disciplinarity. This will take into account on-going and upcoming microbiome activities 
of the International Bioeconomy Forum. 

 ii. Developing a roadmap for action to support agro-ecology mobilising the EU Research and 
Innovation Framework Programme, Common Agricultural Policy, LIFE Programme and other 
relevant EU instruments 

This  action  will  step  up  efforts  to  increase  knowledge  about  drivers  of  agro-biodiversity  and  to 
enhance  (bio)diversity  in  agricultural  production  by  mobilising  instruments  (such  as  the  EU  R&I 
FP, EIP AGRI, LIFE) in a synchronised way. 

Indicators: Action plan established; number of projects/activities funded; number of demonstration 
activities;  number  of  stakeholders  from  farming  community  involved;  Enhance  biodiversity 
protection  (%  of  species  and  habitats  of  Community  interest  related  to  agriculture  with  stable  or 
increasing  trends);  CAP  biodiversity  indicators;  MAES  indicators  on  the  condition  of  agro-
ecosystems 

Agricultural  biodiversity  (including  functional  biodiversity)  underpins  the  delivery  of  ecosystems 
services  and  plays  a  significant  role  in  conferring  stability,  resilience  and  adaptability  to  farming 
systems.260 Despite its importance, diversity in agriculture is declining as manifested by the decline 
of  pollinators  and  other  insects  or  the  limited  use  of  genetic  resources  in  plant  and  animal 
production.   

This action will: 

1) Step up efforts to increase knowledge about drivers of agro- ecology (such as nutrient flows) and 
enhance more diverse production systems. Due attention will be given to promoting the integration 
of  diversity  into  farming  practices  (inter  and  intraspecific  diversity)  and  creating  incentives  for 
wider biodiversity management. A better use of genetic resources will benefit the creation of new 
food and non-food value chains.  

2)  Create  a  roadmap  for  action  on  agro-ecology  bringing  together  different  instruments  (e.g.  EU 
R&I, EIP AGRI, LIFE) and use them in complementary ways towards common action lines. Work 
under  the  various  instruments  will  bring  together  a  range  of  actors  from  the  agricultural, 
environmental and other domains and allow to better link research, demonstration, innovation and 
testing activities. A main ambition is to promote a community of practice and a strategy on agro- 
ecology,  the  latter  one  complementing  the  EU  Biodiversity  strategy.  While  having  a  focus  on 
Europe, activities will capitalise on international expertise and initiatives. 

260 http://teebweb.org/agrifood/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Foundations_vJun26.pdf 

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iii. Developing tools for the integration of pollinators and pollination service into the design of 
sustainable biomass supply value chains   

Member  States  are  called  on  to  strengthen  investments  into  knowledge  base  on  pollinators  and 
pollination by supporting the deployment of an EU scheme for monitoring pollinators, in line with 
the  EU  Pollinators  Initiative.  This  action  will  provide  technical  support  to  Member  States  in 
implementing the monitoring scheme. Based on acquired monitoring data, this action will develop 
tools for policy makers and land managers, such as an atlas of pollinators and pollination service, 
and explore options to build an early warning system for pollination deficit.   

The  private  sector  is  called  upon  to  use  these  tools  to  evaluate  their  dependency  on  pollinators, 
assess future risks and develop risk mitigation strategies in regards to pollination deficit. 

Indicators: Full extent of pollinator decline in the EU assessed; systemic monitoring of the status 
and trends of pollinators established; Number of sectoral policies developed to mitigate causes of 
pollinator decline; number of bioeconomy companies undertaking actions on pollinators 

In  the  EU  wild  pollinators  have  seriously  declined  in  occurrence  and  diversity:  According  to  the 
European Red List almost one in ten bee and butterfly species is facing extinction and around one-
third of species has a declining population.261 For bumblebees, the best studied group of wild bees, 
nearly  one  in  four  species  is  facing  extinction  and  almost  half  of  the  species  experience  negative 
population trends. Around 4 in 5 crop and wild flowering plant species depend, at least in part, on 
animal pollination. 

The pollinator decline will have far-reaching consequences not only on insect-pollinated plants, but 
also  on  the  health  of  terrestrial  ecosystems,  therefore  posing  fundamental  risks  not  only  to  food 
security,  but  to  all  the  economic  activities  that depend  directly  or  indirectly  on  those  ecosystems. 
Agriculture and related industries are particularly dependent. The value of the direct contribution of 
insect  pollinators  to  the  EU  agricultural  output  has  been  estimated  at  around  EUR  15  billion  per 
year.262  For  particular  crops,  the  impact  of  insect  pollination  on  profit  margins  and  viability  of 
businesses  is  very  significant.  For  example,  20%  of  the  market  value  of  oilseed  rape  can  be 
attributed  to  insect  pollination  and  half  of  the  market  value  of  strawberries,263  blueberries  or 
apples264 can depend on insect pollination.  

In  June  2018  the  Commission  adopted  the  first-ever  EU  initiative265  to  tackle  the  decline  of 
pollinators and avoid its negative consequences. Strong knowledge base is a key prerequisite for the 
conservation  of  pollinators  and  the  initiative  lists  a  number  of  actions  to  this  aim.  Monitoring  of 
pollinators and their habitats is particularly important. It provides data that makes possible to assess 
the status and trends of pollinators, and based on that the sustainability of the pollination service. As 
this  service  is  critical  for  maintaining  the  natural  resources  base  on  which  bioeconomy  depends, 
monitoring  of  pollinators  in  effect  provides  information  on  the  sustainability  of  bioeconomy. 

261 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/conservation/species/redlist/bees/status.htm 

262 Gallai N. et al., Ecological Economics, 68, 3, 810-821, (2009), doi: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2008.06.014 

263 Klatt B. K. et al., Proceedings of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences, 281, 2013-2440, (2014), doi: 10.1098/rspb.2013.2440 

264 De Groot G. et al., De bijdrage van (wilde) bestuivers aan de opbrengst van appels en blauwe besse. Alterra, Wageningen UR, Alterra rapport 2636. 

265 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1531117569875&uri=CELEX:52018DC0395 

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Moreover,  coupling  pollinator  data  with  information  on  land  use  (available  through  for  example 
LUCAS266 or the CAP's management system IACS267) makes it possible to develop tools for policy 
makers  and  land  managers  (such  as  an  atlas)  and  build  an  early  warning  system  for  pollination 
deficit.  Such  system  would  be  able  to  predict  future  risks  and  guide  effective  targeted  mitigation 
actions in nature conservation and land management sectors to ensure sustainable pollination.  

Through  the  pollinators  initiative  this  action  will  devise  an  EU-wide  monitoring  scheme  for 
pollinators. The links to bioeconomy are inherent and the strategy will showcase the importance of 
this  process  and  facilitate  its  development  and  implementation.  Member  States  will  play  an 
indispensable role in deploying the scheme on the ground. It will be important to secure adequate 
technical  capacity  in  Member  States  to  ensure  smooth  and  harmonized  implementation  of  the 
scheme across the EU. The private sector across the biomass supply chain should be encouraged to 
use the information acquired though the monitoring to assess risks of the pollinators decline to their 
businesses. This will increase the sector's awareness about the problem and support development of 
risk mitigations strategies in this regard. 

266 http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/LUCAS_-_Land_use_and_land_cover_survey 

267 https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/direct-support/iacs_en 

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