Elsevier

New Biotechnology

Volume 40, Part A, 25 January 2018, Pages 113-118
New Biotechnology

Review
New innovative ecosystems in France to develop the Bioeconomy

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nbt.2017.07.009Get rights and content

Highlights

  • The cluster’s policy initiated in France in 2005 was a formidable opportunity to boost innovation in the bioeconomy.

  • Innovation platforms allowing industrial demonstration and feasibility are now effective.

  • The role of regional and national public partners is essential to succeed in this development.

  • Bioeconomy development requires a long term strategy and support.

  • Public-private partnership is the best way to embrace the future and face markets and policy fluctuations.

Abstract

The cluster’s policy initiated in France in 2005 was a formidable opportunity to boost innovation in the bioeconomy and to develop innovation platforms allowing industrial demonstration and feasibility at technology readiness level (TRL) from 5 to 9. The IAR Cluster (Industries and Agro-Resources), based in the Hauts-de-France and Grand Est regions is completely dedicated to the bioeconomy. IAR’s work has contributed to build a complete innovation ecosystem on bioeconomy by opening up relationships between actors along the full value chain. It also facilitated investments in new platforms and programs through public-private partnerships. The Biorefinery of Pomacle is a good illustration of such a collective approach. The role of regional and national public partners is essential to succeed in this development which requires a long term strategy and support.

Section snippets

IAR competitiveness cluster: the innovation catalyst in the french bioeconomy since 2005

In 2005, the regions of Champagne-Ardenne and Picardie located in northern France (now part of the new regions Grand Est and Hauts-de-France) decided together to build a cluster dedicated to biomass valorization as part of the French government policy on competitiveness clusters. 71 competitiveness clusters were created covering all business sectors, gathering 9 900 companies (86% SME’s) and more than 15 000 researchers.

The Grand Est and Hauts-de-France regions are leader in France for

Breaking down the barriers between the actors all along the value chain

IAR brings together more than 350 stakeholders from farmer cooperatives, research organisations and universities to VCs, start-ups, SMEs and large industries, including end-users, around a common goal: the optimal valorization of renewable resources through biorefining (Fig. 1).

This approach has stimulated transversal innovation between different industrial sectors. Since 2005, IAR has successfully supported 219 research and innovation projects for a total investment of 1.525 billion euros (1/3

BRI (Bioraffinerie Recherches & Innovations): an open innovation platform within the biorefinery of Bazancourt-Pomacle focused on industrial biotechnologies

It is now widely recognized that the industrial biotechnologies (IB) are called to play an important role in the future of the bioeconomy in Europe and all around the world. For Europe, IB are considered as one of the 6 key enabling technologies (KET) [2]. Thanks to the recent and huge progress achieved in the field of the biology, it is now possible to produce by fermentation and or by bioconversion a large range of products of interest for food, chemicals and energy and even produce

Going beyond competition to invest in collective research and demonstration tools in the frame of public-private partnership (PPP)

A major step in intelligent collaboration for innovation lies in the capacity of actors to go beyond competition in their respective business and invest together in new tools for innovation. This is made possible when members and decision-makers use to meet and exchange, particularly in decision-making bodies of the cluster. These kinds of collaborations allow them to share the financial risk in the frame of a clear consortium agreement. As financial contributors, the role of the public sector

Alignment of regional, national and European policy to have a strong leverage effect

The conditions for the development of the bioeconomy are at the optimum when regional, national and European strategies are in line. IAR was the link to optimize synergies.

Building a complete demonstrators ecosystem to boost biobased products development

In order to bridge the innovation valley of death, it was decided to build a complete ecosystem of platforms to prove industrial feasibility, up to TRL 8. All plants components are covered (proteins, oils, carbohydrates). In addition, all main technologies are addressed: biotechnology, biogas production, second generation biofuels (bioethanol by biotechnology, biodiesel with gasification), fermentation, plant fractionation. This policy was built in close collaboration with local authorities at

Conclusion: challenges for the future

The pace of development of new biobased products based on biotechnology and bio-based chemistry has slowed down due to the low oil price. Many investments have been done, thanks to public-private partnerships, but the business model of the open innovation platforms has to evolve to take into account the new economic situation. In the meantime, we need long term policy support at the national and European level to reassure investors and start up. Public-private partnership is probably the best

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