UPM-Biofore-Magazine-1-2016-ENG

The next industrial revolution Europe is on a mission to lead the bio-economic revolution. The European bioeconomy is already a major economic sector accounting for nearly 18 million jobs in various well-established bio-based industries ranging from agriculture to forest- based industries. “The bio-based economy is going to play a key role in replacing fossil fuels on a large scale, but this is not just about energy. We are also seeing new emerging sectors, such as biomaterials and green chemistry,” Bell says. Accelerating development will offer important opportunities for innovation, jobs and growth, helping Europe to ‘reindustrialise’. This task requires expanding political awareness of the need for a coherent framework to promote investment in the bioeconomy globally. An increasing number of EU Member States are creating their own bioeconomy strategies. “More than ever we need new sources of growth in Europe. We can benefit economically and environmentally frommaking better use of our biological resources. Our industry needs to fully exploit the business opportunities that will be created in the transition to a sustainable economy. “There are talented and visionary people taking advantage of these opportunities all over Europe. The change is happening at a national level but also many EU regions are focused on launching their bioeconomy strategies.” Bio-breakthroughs big and small Europe holds the biggest share in the total number of industrial biotechnology patent applications filed since 2000. Although Europe leads the field in innovation, it has not succeeded in commercialising its technologies as well as international competitors such as the US, Brazil, China and South East Asia.

John Bell

“The bio-based economy is going to play a key role in replacing fossil fuels on a large scale, but this is not just about energy. We are also seeing new emerging sectors, such as biomaterials and green chemistry.” – John Bell.

Bell concedes that the EUmarket remains fragmented and is not innovation-friendly enough. A large number of Europe’s best researchers and innovators are moving to other continents in search of more favourable conditions. One of the disadvantages faced by Europe is that land and energy costs are lower and political support and incentives are higher in its peer countries. Europe is spending 0.8% of GDP less than the US and 1.5% less than Japan every year on Research & Development (R&D). “Our challenges are interconnected and require effective action inmany sectors. To unlock our potential we need to increase research and encourage more innovations in new technologies”, emphasises Bell. “We are putting much effort into further developing bio-based products like bio-plastics, bio-chemistry as well as bio-basedmaterials, which

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