Report outlines blueprint to grow Australia’s bioeconomy

A QUT report published today on Australia’s bioeconomy has called for a national strategy and outlined the five key steps needed to grow a sustainable economic future.

The report, published by researchers from QUT and the ARC Center of Excellence in Synthetic Biology Madeline Smith, Dr. Jerome Ramirez and Professor Ian O’Hara, says “now is the time for Australia to act, or risk losing the ability to compete in this rapidly growing global market.”

Professor O’Hara said the global bioeconomy, currently valued at US$4 trillion, was predicted by the World Bioeconomy Forum to grow to US$30 trillion by 2040, which would be a third of total global economic value.

The bioeconomy includes economic activity that uses biological resources, such as plants, animals and organic waste, to produce food, energy and materials in a sustainable way. The bioeconomy has benefits for the economy, environment and society.

“It is a pivotal moment of economic transformation for Australia, which is driven by the shifting global market, rapid technological advancements and the move toward a low-carbon economy,” Professor O’Hara said.

Many countries, including most of the G20 economies, have already developed national bioeconomy strategies that are providing a focal point for coordinated government action unlocking corporate investment.

“Without a unified effort and strategic approach by government, industry and research partners, Australia risks losing the opportunity to compete effectively in this market,” Professor O’Hara said.

“Our world-class research, education and innovation are key strengths that can underpin advancing Australia’s bioeconomy development.”

The report identifies key economic growth opportunities for Australia, including biomanufacturing of sustainable products and materials, value-adding to Australia’s primary industries, the development of new foods and feeds and the manufacturing of low-carbon liquid fuels and renewable gases.

“As examples, Australia is at the forefront of developing new food ingredients including proteins produced through precision fermentation and has the potential to lead in the development of sustainable aviation fuels from agricultural industry byproducts,” Professor O’Hara said.

“Australia has one of the best biomass resources in the world, which provides a huge advantage in the development of these industries. By unlocking the value of these resources, we can add value to Australian agriculture and grow new biomanufacturing industries across regional areas.”

Critical to success will be the development of scale-up facilities to better translate research from the laboratory to commercial scale.

As an example, the recently upgraded QUT Mackay Renewable Biocommodities Pilot Plant based in the Greater Whitsundays Region of Queensland is supporting the sugar industry to diversify into a wider range of value-added products; however, more focus is needed on this very important aspect of technology scale-up and translation.

The report makes five key recommendations to advance Australia’s bioeconomy:

• Develop a national bioeconomy strategy: Assess capabilities, prioritize growth and identify strategies for market, workforce and regional benefits.
• Cultivate world-class, economic and scalable bioeconomy feedstock: Invest in feedstock development and optimize farm-to-market supply chains.
• Build infrastructure to scale bioeconomy solutions: Fund pilot and pre-commercial biomanufacturing infrastructure.
• Grow bioeconomy workforce skills: Expand education and training programs with a focus on regional development.
• Invest in bioeconomy research, development and translation: Establish large-scale collaborative research programs.

The report identifies the key opportunities for the Australian bioeconomy to diversify revenue streams within primary industries and agribusinesses through onshore value-adding and developing emerging industries and new markets within a low-carbon future.

However, there are also barriers and challenges ahead. The report highlights the need for a clear and comprehensive national bioeconomy strategy, reliable and sustainable access to feedstocks, a skilled and adaptable workforce and targeted programs to transfer innovative research to commercial success.