Showing all 16
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Forest-Based Biorefineries: Innovative Bio-Based Products for a clean Transition (PDF)
NewMarkets & Economy, Policy, Technology
8 Pages
244 Downloads244 Downloads
2024-10
FREE
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DownloadsA new study conducted by the nova-Institute and commissioned by the Confederation of European Paper Industries (Cepi) unveils a significant surge in the European biorefinery sector, with forest-based biorefineries more than doubling their turnover to €6 billion since 2020. This remarkable growth underscores the rising demand for sustainable, bio-based alternatives to fossil-based products.
The research, focused on the pulp and paper industry that produce additional bio-based products which land on the market beyond pulp and paper, identifies a total of 143 biorefineries across Europe, with 126 currently operational and 17 in development. The largest number of biorefineries is in Sweden, Finland, Germany, Portugal and Austria. The study points to a bright future for biorefineries, with projected annual growth rates of up to 5% until 2050.
The products of these biorefineries provide sustainable solutions across various industries, from aviation to fashion, offering alternatives in materials, chemicals, fuels, food, and pharmaceuticals. Importantly, biorefineries contribute to Europe’s climate targets, with bio-based products already substituting over 3.1 megatons of CO2 emissions that would have been produced by fossil-based industries.The study emphasises that these advancements are not replacing traditional pulp and paper-making activities but are creating new revenue streams and increasing resource efficiency, providing a pathway to sustainable economic growth.
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European Bioeconomy in Figures 2014–2021 (PDF)
NewMarkets & Economy, Policy, Sustainability & Health
29 Pages
512 Downloads512 Downloads
2024-09
FREE
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DownloadsThe bioeconomy in the European Union is a strong contributor to the overall economy and accounts for over 16 million employees and more than 2.3 trillion Euro in turnover across all 27 Member States. In terms of turnover almost half of the 2.3 trillion Euro can be attributed to the food and feed industries, which remain a large part of the EU bioeconomy. Adding to this are the agriculture and forestry sectors providing primary biomass to bioeconomic processes. However, the sectors processing these feedstocks and manufacturing intermediate and end-use products, collectively referred to as the bio-based industries, find themselves contributing on a stable level to the overall bioeconomy and account for almost a third of the overall turnover.
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Cellulose Fibres Conference 2024 (Proceedings, PDF)
Markets & Economy, Policy, Sustainability & Health, Technology
2024-04
150 € ex. tax
Plus 19% MwSt.Press
release Add to
cartThe conference covered the entire value chain, from lignocellulose, chemical pulp, cellulose fibres such as rayon, viscose, modal or lyocell and new developments to a wide range of applications:
Textiles from renewable fibres, non-wovens such as wet wipes as well as new areas such as composites, hygiene, packaging or nanocellulose in the food industry. The conference offered deep insights into the promising future of cellulose fibres, which perfectly fits the current trends of circular economy, recycling and sustainable carbon cycles.The Cellulose Fibres Conference Proceedings (https://cellulose-fibres.eu, 13-14 March 2024, Cologne, hybrid) include all released conference presentations, the conference journal, sponsor documents, a Fiber2Fashion Knowledgepaper and the conference press release.
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RCI’s scientific background report: “The use of food and feed crops for bio-based materials and the related effects on food security – Promoting evidence-based debates and recognising potential benefits” (June 2023) Short Version
Markets & Economy, Policy, Sustainability & Health, Technology
2 Pages
899 Downloads899 Downloads
2023-11
FREE
899
DownloadsPromoting Evidence-based Debates and Recognising Potential Benefits
This short version of the scientific paper highlights on two pages new insights into a hotly debated topic and urges for careful and evidence-based debates.
The paper aims to show that the well-known biomass debate is flawed, subjective and not fully based on evidence. What is detrimental to food security are, according to the World Food Programme in 2023, climate change, conflict, extreme inequalities in wealth distribution, heavy dependence on food imports from industrial countries, overconsumption of meat, losses along the value chain and the impact of the COVID pandemic. Competition between biomass uses is not mentioned among the relevant causes.
The use of biomass for industrial applications, does have the potential to replace fossil feedstocks and thus contribute to the urgently needed reduction of fossil carbon emissions into our atmosphere to mitigate climate change.
While not denying the dire need to combat world hunger, the authors of the paper argue that using food and feed crops for chemicals and materials will not necessarily exacerbate food insecurity, and in fact has the potential to cause multiple benefits for local and global food security, climate mitigation and other factors:
- The climate wins – Bio-based materials are part of the solution to achieve climate change mitigation.
- Land productivity wins – The competition between applications is not for the type of crop grown, but for the land.
- The environment wins – due to increased resource efficiency and productivity of food and feed crops.
- Farmers win – because they have more options for selling stock to different markets.
- Market stability wins – due to increased global availability of food and feed crops.
- Feed security wins – due to the high value of the protein-rich co-products of food and feed crops.
- Food security wins – due to the increased overall availability of edible crops that can be stored and flexibly distributed.
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RCI’s scientific background report: “RCI carbon flows report – Compilation of supply and demand of fossil and renewable carbon on a global and European level” (Oct. 2023)
Policy, Sustainability & Health
92 Pages
2859 Downloads2859 Downloads
2023-10
FREE
2859
DownloadsThe Carbon Flows report is a compilation of supply and demand of fossil and renewable carbon on a global and European level. It provides a comprehensive understanding of today’s carbon flows and what it means to replace fossil carbon with renewable carbon in the materials and chemicals sectors. It’s main intent is to provide a uniform and transparent data basis for a future carbon management that can be used and shared by industry, associations, policy-makers, science and alike.
In the last five years, the mindset around carbon has changed fundamentally. Of course, there is no way around the fact that the rising concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere pose an existential threat to life on Earth. But at the same time, carbon is the main component of our food, the basis of all organic chemicals and plastics, and the backbone of life on Earth.
In the chemicals and plastics sectors in particular, almost 90% of the carbon used as feedstock is fossil carbon. This fossil carbon must be replaced by renewable carbon from recycling, biomass and CO2 by 2050 to avoid a further influx of fossil carbon into our technosphere and atmosphere.This report provides a comprehensive, detailed and updated carbon flow data basis that significantly surpasses previous publications, containing more than 35 figures and tables with corresponding descriptions of methodology, source material and data. All data have been corroborated as best as currently possible by scientific publications, feedback from experts and additional research. Remaining gaps and differences are transparently depicted and explained as well as possible.
The nova experts assessed data from a multitude of sources. A wide range of data on material flow are used to compile a comprehensive inventory of carbon stocks and flows. The sectors covered include all applications of organic carbon from fossil resources and biomass production, from raw materials through utilisation to final end-of-life. This includes use of carbon for feed and food, for materials, for energy and for fuels. A special focus is put on the carbon demand in the chemical and plastic industry today and tomorrow, with several figures specifically zooming into this sector and including scenarios for a full defossilisation by 2050.
The Carbon Flows report is designed to be a living document that we would like to update every one to two years if possible. This also means that we look forward to your feedback, additional input, new data and suggestions from any interested party. Please directly contact the main author of the study for this: ferdinand.kaehler@nova-institut.de
DOI No.: https://doi.org/10.52548/KCTT1279
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Graphic of the scientific paper „The Use of Food and Feed Crops for Bio-based Materials and the Related Effects on Food Security“ (PNG)
Markets & Economy, Policy, Sustainability & Health, Technology
1 Page
108 Downloads108 Downloads
2023-06
FREE
108
DownloadsPromoting Evidence-based Debates and Recognising Potential Benefits
The graphic shows the multiple potential benefits of using food and feed crops for bio-based materials, in terms of climate, land productivity, environment, farmers, market stability, feed security and food security.
- The climate wins – Bio-based materials are part of the solution to achieve climate change mitigation.
- Land productivity wins – The competition between applications is not for the type of crop grown, but for the land
- The environment wins – due to increased resource efficiency and productivity of food and feed crops.
- Farmers win – because they have more options for selling stock to different markets.
- Market stability wins – due to increased global availability of food and feed crops.
- Feed security wins – due to the high value of the protein-rich co-products of food and feed crops.
- Food security wins – due to the increased overall availability of edible crops that can be stored and flexibly distributed.
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RCI’s scientific background report: “The use of food and feed crops for bio-based materials and the related effects on food security – Promoting evidence-based debates and recognising potential benefits” (June 2023) Long Version
Markets & Economy, Policy, Sustainability & Health, Technology
36 Pages
1502 Downloads1502 Downloads
2023-06
FREE
1502
DownloadsPromoting Evidence-based Debates and Recognising Potential Benefits
This scientific paper highlights new insights into a hotly debated topic and urges for careful and evidence-based debates.
The paper aims to show that the well-known biomass debate is flawed, subjective and not fully based on evidence. What is detrimental to food security are, according to the World Food Programme in 2023, climate change, conflict, extreme inequalities in wealth distribution, heavy dependence on food imports from industrial countries, overconsumption of meat, losses along the value chain and the impact of the COVID pandemic. Competition between biomass uses is not mentioned among the relevant causes.
The use of biomass for industrial applications, does have the potential to replace fossil feedstocks and thus contribute to the urgently needed reduction of fossil carbon emissions into our atmosphere to mitigate climate change.
While not denying the dire need to combat world hunger, the authors of the paper argue that using food and feed crops for chemicals and materials will not necessarily exacerbate food insecurity, and in fact has the potential to cause multiple benefits for local and global food security, climate mitigation and other factors:
- The climate wins – Bio-based materials are part of the solution to achieve climate change mitigation.
- Land productivity wins – The competition between applications is not for the type of crop grown, but for the land.
- The environment wins – due to increased resource efficiency and productivity of food and feed crops.
- Farmers win – because they have more options for selling stock to different markets.
- Market stability wins – due to increased global availability of food and feed crops.
- Feed security wins – due to the high value of the protein-rich co-products of food and feed crops.
- Food security wins – due to the increased overall availability of edible crops that can be stored and flexibly distributed.
DOI No.: https://doi.org/10.52548/WQXU7327
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Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI) draws worldwide attention (PDF)
Policy, Sustainability & Health
2 Pages
286 Downloads286 Downloads
2021-11
FREE
286
DownloadsThe climate crisis is accelerating at an unprecedented pace, with global warming, greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation leading to food insecurity, global health problems and biodiversity loss. Greenhouse gas emissions associated with the use of carbon-containing fossil energy sources such as oil, coal and natural gas have been shown to be a major contributor to climate change. Thus, for decades the focus of climate protection has been predominantly on the energy sector. A new initiative is now expanding this view. Learn about the history and activities of the Renewable Carbon Initiative (RCI).
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BioSinn – Products for which biodegradation makes sense (PDF)
Markets & Economy, Policy
134 Pages
2430 Downloads2430 Downloads
2021-05
FREE
2430
DownloadsIn the project “BioSinn – Products for which biodegradation makes sense”, which was funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (funding code 2219NR197), experts from the nova-Institute in Hürth near Cologne investigated whether there are applications and products for which biodegradation is a sensible or even the best end-of-life option. The selection criteria were that collecting the products (or their remaining parts), separating them from other organic waste or material recycling is not possible, economically not feasible or does not take place in practice. Further criteria were that the input of microplastics into the environment can be avoided through the use of biodegradable materials or that indirect positive effects, a relevant secondary benefit, can be achieved through the use of biodegradable materials.
The result of the project is a brochure for decision-makers from industry and politics but also for the general public, with 25 fact sheets and extensive background information on biodegradation. For each product, it explains to what extent biodegradation is a sensible and feasible option and what technical substitution options are available for a more sustainable use of materials. In addition, political framework conditions and regulations were highlighted and evaluated on a product-specific basis. For the first time, the market volumes for Germany and the EU were also surveyed and estimated. The total volume of the 25 applications in Germany is about 170,000 tonnes and in the European Union even about 1 million tonnes, of which the largest share ends up in the environment. Here, the use of biodegradable materials would bring considerable environmental benefits.
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Bioeconomy is not alone – from Bioeconomy to Carbon Management
Policy, Sustainability & Health, Technology
2 Pages
199 Downloads199 Downloads
2021-04
FREE
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DownloadsThe bioeconomy faces great expectations and hopes in the fight against climate change, and at the same time is viewed critically. The biggest problems in building a strong bioeconomy are direct and indirect land use changes, which have significant impacts on biodiversity, climate change, and food security.
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nova-Paper #14: Are new food and biomass technologies more sustainable? A review − Full version
Sustainability & Health
22 Pages
624 Downloads624 Downloads
2020-11
FREE
624
Downloads -
Limit and guideline values for THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) in hemp foods − Full version
Policy, Sustainability & Health
29 Pages
237 Downloads237 Downloads
2019-06
FREE
237
Downloads -
Proceedings of Revolution in Food and Biomass Production (REFAB) Conference 2018
Markets & Economy
18 Downloads18 Downloads
2018-10
FREE
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Downloads -
34 Downloads
2016-04
FREE
34
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nova paper #2 on bio-based economy: “Food or non-food: Which agricultural feedstocks are best for industrial uses?” − Article in bioplastics MAGAZINE
Policy
4 Pages
707 Downloads707 Downloads
2013-08
FREE
707
Downloads -
nova paper #2 on bio-based economy: “Food or non-food: Which agricultural feedstocks are best for industrial uses?” − Full version
Policy
9 Pages
3996 Downloads3996 Downloads
2013-07
FREE
3996
Downloads