The European Commission’s updated Bioeconomy Strategy has received strong backing from industry, which sees the move as a long-awaited recognition of the sector’s role in European competitiveness.
Unlike earlier policy frameworks, the new plan explicitly identifies bio-based materials and biomanufacturing as strategic industrial assets—and not just environmental solutions.
Europe already leads globally in several bio-based technology fields. The sector is valued at €2.7 trillion and employs more than 17 million workers, spanning packaging, chemicals, construction materials, consumer goods and advanced biopolymers. Yet industry groups such as Cepi argue that the potential of these markets has been constrained by regulatory fragmentation and cheaper fossil-based alternatives.
The new Strategy signals a shift. The Commission plans to streamline investment conditions, align rules across sectors and update key legislation to give bio-based materials a fairer competitive footing. Among the planned measures are revisions to Product Environmental Footprint methodologies, which would improve accounting of biogenic carbon and remove barriers for renewable materials. Other initiatives include possible bio-based content requirements under the Ecodesign regulation and support for bio-based plastics through the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation.
Jori Ringman, Director General of Cepi, states that fragmented regulations have long hindered the bioeconomy while fossil competitors faced fewer barriers. The new Strategy, he adds, finally positions the sector as a key industrial asset, paving the way for large-scale deployment.
Industry leaders say the strategy could help unlock the deployment of biomaterials in high-value applications—from fibre-based packaging to bio-based polymers and biochemicals. The plan also emphasises scaling up industrial solutions rather than leaving innovations in the pilot-phase. A longer-term roadmap is set to run through 2030, with a vision extending to 2040.
Although the forest-based industries remain integral to the biomass supply base and regional employment, the strongest momentum is in packaging and biomanufacturing, where Europe already has a technological advantage. The shift from concept to implementation is seen as crucial if Europe intends to move beyond fossil-based inputs and build resilient, domestic value chains.
Industry representatives stress that the strategy marks a turning point: the bioeconomy is now positioned not just as a climate tool, but as a core component of Europe’s industrial policy. The next phase will depend on how quickly new rules translate into market growth and investor confidence.
Source: Cepi
