Growing and implementing the bio-based economy in Europe depends on research investment, stakeholder engagement and market enhancements, according to a presentation given at Achema 2012 by Maive Rute, director of biotechnology, agriculture and food in the European Commission (EC) Directorate-General for Research and Innovation.
Rute’s presentation set the stage for the two-day European Bioeconomy conference at Achema 2012. Toward improving bioeconomy markets and enhancing competitiveness, Rute said the EC Joint Research Center has set up a bioeconomy observatory to collect data that will inform policy decisions related to the bio-based economy. Further, her organization intends to help biorefinery networks develop, support solutions involving bio-based technologies for existing industries, and promote adoption of bio-based products.
In the research and innovation category, Rute commented that the goal should be to make the best use of funding, while continuing to increase investment in research. Among the EC initiatives in this area are to develop bio-based industry clusters to support innovation and to support entrepreneurship training.
Picking up on the theme of research and innovation in the bioeconomy, Martin Scheele, of the EC Directorat-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, spoke about closing the gap between research and farming practice.
Research in Europe is very good, he explained, but often the results of that work are not fully exploited, and not translated into actual practice. A two-way flow of research results from scientists and feedback from the farming community is needed to enhance interaction.
The potential to close the gap between research and practice is high, Scheele remarked, and the European Innovation Partnership acts as a facilitator, promoting the use of available tools and programs to accomplish the task.
Also speaking at the bioeconomy forum was Henriette van Eijl, of the Directorate-General for Enterprise and Industry. She discussed the Lead Market Initiative, an effort to stimulate demand for bio-based products. In her talk, she said that uncertainty in the demand for innovations in bio-based products can deter companies from making investments toward the bioeconomy.
The session continued with a series of presentations on biomass feedstock availability and the value chain, as well as biorefineries. The second day of the bioeconomy conference will conclude the discussion on biorefineries and explore the current status of bio-based products.