Promising Steps for Europe’s Bioeconomy, Yet Key Industrial Gaps Remain
Starch Europe, representing the European starch industry, welcomes the launch of the long-awaited EU Bioeconomy Strategy. Standing at the crossroads of agriculture and industry, the starch sector is a crucial and strategic enabler of the EU bioeconomy, supplying essential ingredients for food, feed, industrial and personal care products while replacing fossil-based inputs across chemicals, materials and energy. Starch is today the principal feedstock for Europe’s bio-based applications.[1]
We strongly endorse the Strategy’s clear and consistent recognition of integrated biorefineries as essential industrial infrastructures at the core of Europe’s competitiveness and resilience. By acknowledging their central role in converting sustainable biomass into ingredients for food, feed, industrial applications and energy, the Strategy reflects the maturity of the bioeconomy and the importance of fully integrated, efficient value chains.
The EU starch sector, however, sits at the centre of a climate paradox: our industry produces crucial components to reach a net-zero economy by helping to decarbonize other industries, yet our own operations remain partly reliant on fossil energy due to the absence of viable, cost-effective alternatives. This paradox is only one dimension of a wider competitiveness stress: high and volatile input costs, structural energy price disparities and accelerating global competition are eroding Europe’s ability to scale and compete. The Strategy takes initial steps to address this paradox through improved environmental foot printing, potential recognition of certified biogenic removals under the Emission Trading System (ETS) and a more supportive policy framework under the Clean Industrial Deal. These measures can contribute to fairer carbon accounting and incentivise further low-carbon investment.
Nonetheless, important gaps remain at a time when Europe’s starch industry is already facing a deteriorating competitiveness outlook and increasingly complex market conditions. Implementation of the Bioeconomy Strategy and alignment with related initiatives will be crucial. There is an urgent need to strengthen the competitiveness of established bio-based industries, such as the starch sector, which plays a central role in transforming EU agricultural raw materials into the feedstocks that underpin a thriving bioeconomy. We count on the Clean Industrial Deal as a key enabler, yet its operationalisation remains unclear. Only effective and timely implementation of both the Bioeconomy Strategy and the related strategies will determine whether these ambitions can deliver real industrial impact. To ensure Europe’s bioeconomy leadership, we urge the Commission to take a holistic view to address the competitive challenges faced by the starch industry, one of its most strategic bio-economy pillars
The European Starch Industry stands ready to work with the Commission and Member States to turn this potential into a mature, competitive and sustainable European bioeconomy.
