EuropaBio pushes Brussels to supercharge bioeconomy with clearer policy and better investment access

EuropaBio has released its official recommendations for the European Union’s Bioeconomy Strategy, urging policymakers to recognize biotechnology as central to the EU’s industrial growth, energy transition, and global competitiveness.

Published this month, the paper outlines how the revised Bioeconomy Strategy must align with other key initiatives – including the EU Biotech Act, the Life Science Strategy, and the Clean Industrial Deal — to create a coherent framework for scaling up biotech innovation. EuropaBio, which represents the biotech sector and is a member of the European Bioeconomy Alliance (EUBA), stressed the importance of this alignment to unlock capital, encourage innovation, and drive sustainable economic development.

“The Bioeconomy strategy is an important step to preserve Europe’s competitiveness and to support the EU’s industrial decarbonisation and growth through innovation,” the document states. “It can drive forward the transition away from a petroleum-based society and should therefore be considered a core pillar of the EU’s industrial policy.”

EUBA represents sectors that encompass 29 million professionals who produce and transform bio-based feedstocks into everything from food and feed to chemicals, materials, fuels and energy. EuropaBio supports EUBA’s call for a reliable and investment-friendly policy framework that allows the bioeconomy to reach its full potential.

The strategy recommendations are grouped into three broad categories: investment security, market access, and innovation and skills development.

According to EuropaBio, a persistent lack of access to finance is stalling progress in biotech innovation across the EU. The group attributes this to fragmented and risk-averse capital markets and argues that public-private partnerships and strategic funding mechanisms are needed to close the investment gap – especially at high technology readiness levels.

EuropaBio recommends opening the EU’s Innovation Fund and Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) to biotechnology, as well as increasing support for initiatives such as the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE-JU).

The group also calls for the expansion of public procurement schemes to include biotech applications beyond healthcare and for a more inclusive approach to sustainable financing. “The industry is currently exploring different pathways and solutions and should not be hindered in its innovation process by simplistic restrictions based on feedstock type,” it warns.

The report criticizes the current regulatory environment as outdated and misaligned with biotech processes, saying this creates unnecessary hurdles and discourages investment. Fragmentation across EU Member States adds another layer of complexity that undermines commercial progress.

EuropaBio recommends removing barriers to feedstock access, setting clear sustainability criteria for biomanufacturing, and introducing unbiased accounting mechanisms for bio-based products to compete on equal footing with fossil-based alternatives.

It also calls for updated terminology and policy definitions to better reflect modern bioprocesses, noting the importance of consumer acceptance and clarity around what qualifies as bio-based.

To foster a thriving biotech ecosystem, EuropaBio argues the EU must build stronger institutional infrastructure and workforce capabilities. One of its key proposals is the creation of an EU Biotech & Life Science Office, led by a Chief Biotech Officer within the Commission Secretariat General. The idea is to coordinate policy across directorates and ensure biotech is fully integrated into the EU’s broader strategic planning.

The organization also proposes national biotechnology offices to promote regional coherence, improved implementation of legislation across Member States, and international partnerships to reduce trade barriers and secure biotech supply chains.

In terms of talent, the group urges investment in pan-European education and re-skilling programs, as well as mutual recognition of biotech-relevant professional qualifications within the EU and with strategic partners.

With these recommendations, EuropaBio hopes to see a robust, unified strategy that puts biotech at the heart of Europe’s transition to a sustainable and competitive industrial future.