Launched on 27 November 2025, the EU Bioeconomy Strategy sets out plans for supporting a circular and decarbonised economic model using resources from both land and sea and offering alternatives to critical raw materials.
The bioeconomy in the EU was valued at €2.7tn ($3.1tn) in 2023 and employed 17.1m people, representing around 8% of the region’s jobs. For every job created directly in the bioeconomy, three more are generated indirectly.
As part of the strategy, the European Commission aims to scale up innovation so that research leads to practical solutions across agriculture, forestry, fisheries, aquaculture, biomass processing, biomanufacturing, and biotechnologies.
The plan calls for greater public and private investment in bio-based technologies. It also proposes setting up a Bioeconomy Investment Deployment Group to create a pipeline of investment-ready projects and encourage private capital.
The European Commission has identified several key markets with high potential for bio-based materials and technologies. These include plastics, fibres, textiles, chemicals, fertilisers, plant protection products, construction materials, biorefineries, and advanced fermentation.
A Bio-based Europe Alliance is proposed to unite EU companies with the goal of collectively purchasing €10bn worth of bio-based solutions by the end of this decade.
Sustainable biomass sourcing forms an important part of the new framework. The European Commission emphasises the need for responsible management of forests, soils, water, and ecosystems.
Initiatives will reward farmers and foresters who protect soil health and enhance carbon sinks while promoting sustainable use of biomass. The strategy also promotes circularity by encouraging better use of agricultural residues, by-products, and organic waste.
Global Standard, the organisation behind the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), has welcomed the strategy’s specific mention of textiles as a lead market for sustainable biomaterials.
Global Standard global regulation specialist Aleksandra Czajka said: “While bio-based textiles were first highlighted during the 2018 update of the Bioeconomy Strategy, the new framework offers an opportunity to explicitly position organic natural fibres and organic textiles as strategic assets for sustainable consumption and production.”
Global Standard supports efforts within the strategy to improve assessment tools for comparability across bio-based products.
The organisation notes that current tools such as Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) and Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulations (ESPR) do not fully address issues arising from expanded textile supply chains or increased use of fossil fuel-based fibres.
It identifies biodiversity loss and microplastic pollution from insufficient regulation or lack of alternative approaches as ongoing risks.
Czajka said: “The outcome of the Strategy for textiles will depend on whether it provides regulatory clarity, with harmonised definitions of ‘organic’ and ‘bio-based textiles’ and alignment with other legislation to prevent mislabelling and greenwashing.”
The official launch event for the new strategy will take place on 2 December in Copenhagen during the Danish Presidency of the EU Council’s Bioeconomy event.
