---

28 January 201923 January 2019

RED II – Small steps in the ongoing struggle to put bioenergy on a sustainable path

Final version of the Directive on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources (RED II) was published

---

Christmas trees to paint and sweeteners, newly discovered protein, hemp beard oils, potato waste fiberboard, biobased outdoor apparel and cosmetics, and more: The Digest’s Top 10 Innovations for the week of January 10th

The pace of bioeconomy invention and change continues at a frenetic pace. Here are the top innovations for the week of January 10th

---

25 January 201920 January 2019

Top 10 Bioeconomy Markets and Predictions for 2019

As the sunset of 2018 gives way to the dawn of 2019, once again roll the dice as we list the Digest’s 10 Top Advanced Bioeconomy Markets & Predictions for 2019

---

24 January 201921 January 2019

Are we fast enough for change: a global view of design and timber

Timber can play an increased role in the fundamental change necessary for a sustainable future

---

An interview with Jürgen Eck CEO BRAIN AG, the Most Innovative Bioeconomy CEO 2018

In this exclusive interview, the Most Innovative Bioeconomy CEO 2018 voted by our readers, talks about his company, the bioeconomy and the concept of innovation

---

Vision 2040 of the European Forest-based Sector launched in Vienna

Conference aimed to show that the forest-based sector is a leading actor in and enabler of a circular bioeconomy

---

22 January 20199 September 2021

Carbon, concrete, cotton – BASF has it covered

Four projects and commitment to R&D that furthers sustainability, lowers emissions, and improves efficiencies show they are serious about improving

---

18 January 201915 January 2019

Canadian BioProducts Industry Strives to Increase Investor Interest

Report to follow on the Investment Readiness Survey of Canadian BioProducts

---

17 January 201914 January 2019

The top ten bio-economy stories of 2018… revealed!

Some major breakthroughs and announcements and a glut of brands have been turned to bio-based and seek to make their products more sustainable

---

15 January 201918 January 2019

Fermentable sugar as a raw material for the chemical industry: first generation as sustainable as the second – significant reduction in greenhouse gases for both

New study conducts quantitative and qualitative sustainability assessment of bio-based raw materials for the chemical industry

---

BBI JU launches report of good national-level policies and strategies to support bio-based industries

This publication provides an overview of the status of policies and strategies to support the bio-based industrial sector at national level during 2017

---

14 January 20199 January 2019

More than 1,000 Hemp Industries Association® Members to Benefit from Official Designation of Hemp as an Agricultural Commodity

New bill redefines hemp as an agricultural commodity, paving the way for a massive expansion of economic opportunities across all sectors of the hemp industry

---

11 January 20197 January 2019

Indirect additional global warming impacts from processes attributing to direct global warming and example of permafrost melting

Contribution article by Ville Uusitalo, Assistant Professor at the LUT-University and Annamari Enström, Senior Researcher, LCA at Neste Corporation

---

A new study from MIT Sloan School finds consumers are willing to pay a premium for supply chain visibility

Research has implications for how firms message their efforts to target customers

---

10 January 20197 January 2019

Leaf validates fully integrated GlycellTM process & secures R&D financing package

Glycell^TM technology package has now been validated in a pilot facility for the first time as an integrated process

---

Genetically modified ‘shortcut’ boosts plant growth by 40%

University of Illinois researcher team is now hoping to use its findings to boost the yields of soybean, rice, potato and tomato plants

---

9 January 201921 December 2018

BASF pulling out of bioplastics JV

Upon BASF’s exit, Avantium will acquire the German company’s equity interest in the JV and Synvina will continue its operations as a fully Avantium-owned company

---

Six leading universities launch the “European Bioeconomy University” initiative

“European Bioeconomy University” – that is the title under which the six strongest European universities in the area of the bioeconomy will team up to work towards a common goal

---

8 January 201910 January 2019

In-depth psychological market research finds surprising insights into consumers’ mindset towards bio-based products

Deep-seated opinions, prejudices and contexts

---

UC San Diego Awarded $2 Million to Advance Algae-based Renewable Polymers

Department of Energy funds ‘bio-economy’ project for novel manufacturing of algae-based biopolymers

---

7 January 201919 December 2018

Global Biodegradable Packaging Market Size & Share

Segmented by Material Type, Application and Region - Growth, Trends and Forecast (2018 - 2023)

---

BASF notifies Avantium of its exit from Synvina

Companies still discussing terms and conditions of an exit - Avantium continues to disagree with BASF’s interpretation of the joint venture agreement

---

How to support the European bioeconomy with Big Data technologies

A pilot initiative has offered a new solution for sustainable forestry. It’s part of a series of activities that handle massive data flows collected through sensors and aerial and satellite imagery

---

21 December 201818 December 2018

RSB Assembly Approves Groundbreaking Standard for Advanced Products

For the first time, products from recycled carbon and non-biogenic waste will be able to carry real and credible sustainability claims

---

20 December 201817 December 2018

Lost in translation: Calls for Proposals are determined by language

Calls for Proposals should be clearly understandable for non-native speakers, explaining definitions and concepts more clearly and leaving less room for interpretation

---

18 December 201814 December 2018

Build a PLAnet™ for sustainable bioplastics

Strategic collaboration will support manufacturers interested in entering the bioplastic market by delivering integrated PLA technology packages

---

Perstorp: The sale of Capa™ to unlock significant value

Group to focus its business opportunities and future growth prospects on its Polyol, Oxo and Feed businesses

---

Report: Biofuels, bioproducts required to meet GHG goals

Regarding the U.S., the report finds that although the country is the most prominent producer and consumer of biofuels in the world, 80.1 percent of total primary energy consumption came from fossil fuels as of 2016

---

17 December 201814 December 2018

Michael Carus – Person of the Year 2018

The founding father and driving force of the German bioplastics movement is considered as one of the leading experts in agricultural resources and industrial materials

---

Wood-based innovations made an appearance at Independence Day Reception in Finland

Stora Enso's woodpulp has being used as a raw material in the evening gown made by Aalto University for Finland’s First Lady Jenni Haukio

---

Finnlands First Lady feiert Unabhängigkeitstag in Kleid aus holzbasierten Fasern

Stora Enso's holzbasiertes Garn diente als Ausgangsmaterial für die Abendrobe der First Lady Jenni Haukio

---

UK aims to double bioeconomy to £440 billion by 2030

New UK Bioeconomy strategy aims to increase the size of the impact of the bioeconomy from its 2014 level of £220 billion (€247 billion) to £440 billion (€494 billion)

---

14 December 201817 December 2018

Neste strengthens its global leading position in renewable products with a major investment in Singapore

Global market demand for low-carbon solutions in transport and cities, aviation, polymers and chemicals requiring investment on additional renewable products production capacity

---

12 December 201813 December 2018

European Bioeconomy Strategy Update: A Necessary Re-focus

Bioeconomy Strategy aims to make UK world-leader by 2030

---

KaiCell Fibers makes the bioeconomy protagonist in the Independence Day of Finland

KaiCell Fibers’ strive is to develop value-added bio-products

---

11 December 20186 December 2018

Raising the youth’s awareness on the bioeconomy: the Think Biobased Challenge

It should be one of our primary goals for the children of the future to raise their awareness on the opportunities the bioeconomy can provide

---

Stora Enso and startup Sulapac have joined forces to develop renewable and biodegradable straws

The demo, which targets production on an industrial scale, is designed to replace traditional plastic straws with renewable ones

---

10 December 20187 December 2018

New market data: The positive trend for the bioplastics industry remains stable

Global bioplastics production capacity is set to increase from around 2.1 million tonnes in 2018 to 2.6 million tonnes in 2023

---

Think Biobased Challenge

For a transition to a Biobased Economy we need brilliant minds to develop innovative teaching materials that can be used to draw attention

---

6 December 20183 December 2018

Fungi convert waste material into food, fuel and feed

Researchers at the University of Borås are developing methods for growing fungi on material that would otherwise have become waste

---

Welcome to the 12th newsletter of the RoadToBio project

In this newsletter, we will talk about deliverable D2.4 “Ways to overcome regulatory and acceptance hurdles”, as one piece in the puzzle on our way

---

5 December 20186 December 2018

nova-Institute announces new market study on bioplastics with latest data for 2018

Winter special value pack: Get our current report with data for 2017 and receive the upcoming 2018 report for free

---

Canada’s Bio-Economy to Develop New National Occupation Standards

New project to improve labour market information available to the industry, enhance skills recognition and improve recruitment

---

Brightmark Energy Announces Major Investment in Nation’s First Commercial-Scale Plastics-to-Fuel Plant

RES Polyflow, Ohio-based energy technology company innovated the process for converting plastics directly into transportation fuel and other products

---

New guidelines on cascading use fail to meet expectations of EU’s new Bioeconomy Strategy

The guidelines should be aligned with the new EU strategy to make the bioeconomy more circular

---

What can you make from the world’s strongest thread?

TechMark Arena is a transdisciplinary academy that brings together master’s students from various backgrounds in order to work on a common theme

---

Report: Pro-innovation policies, biotech advances are linked

The fifth edition of the Building the Bioeconomy report shows the correlation between economies with pro-innovation policy frameworks and those achieving strong biotechnology outputs

---

3 December 2018

Common language across the value chains of bio-based products – where are the real challenges?

Misunderstandings of terms can halter the growth of the bio-based economy as this unclarity on specifications of products can influence the decisions taken by companies and ultimately consumers to make the switch to these materials

---

VTT and the City of Nokia to study the use of bio-based carbon dioxide as a raw material in the ECO3 business park in Finland

The goal is to set-up framework for potential investors as well as for future technology demonstrations

---

A ‘Geneva Convention’ on how we use the biosphere?

In this month’s Newsletter, NC partner Martin Doktar discusses the broader framework within which a globally effective BioFuture ought to be pursued