The European Commission has published a new initiative, Building the Future with Nature: Boosting Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing in the EU, that summarises the sector’s challenges and proposes a line of actions to address these barriers in different industries, such as agriculture, health, marine biotech, and food and feed among others.
According to the Good Food Institute Europe‘s policy team, the document provides three key actions pertinent to Europe’s alternative protein sector, as follows.
Firstly, the document emphasises the importance of fostering public and private investments in biotechnology through the European Innovation Council’s accelerator program. It suggests including specific biotech-related challenges in the program to support innovative technologies and solutions. Furthermore, the document mentions exploring new investment support options from the European Investment Bank to boost investment in the sector.
The aim is to support ground-breaking innovation, address funding gaps, assess market needs, and identify emerging projects to support solutions based on biotechnology and biomanufacturing. According to EU communication, these initiatives aim to promote growth, innovation, and sustainability in the biotech industry within the EU.
Innovation and technology centres
Secondly, the document highlights the role of biotechnology in addressing food security challenges by reducing external dependencies in the agri-food sector, minimizing crop and food losses, reducing the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, and reducing the overall environmental footprint of agri-food production systems.
The document says that by integrating biotechnology into agri-food production systems, the EU can work to achieve climate neutrality goals and provide healthier and more sustainable food options.
Among the actions to achieve food security, the EU proposes establishing Regional Innovation Valleys specialising in food to enhance collaboration and innovation among researchers, startups, and companies in the industry, fostering synergies and cross-pollination of ideas. Biotech innovations can lead to the development of food with enhanced nutritional traits, lower saturated fats, reduced allergens, and increased disease-fighting nutrients, as explained in the document.
Lastly, in its communication, the EU Commission highlights the importance of creating technology centers to provide startups with access to expertise and facilities, helping them accelerate the path to market and navigate the challenges, including the ‘valley of death’ often faced by new ventures in the industry.
Biotech in the EU
The document points out the rapid growth of the global biotechnology market, with the United States contributing to 60%, dominating value and market share. The EU follows with 12%, and China with 11%.
According to the paper, the biotechnology industry in the EU made a substantial economic contribution in 2018, with €31 billion directly added to the GDP and numerous direct and indirect jobs created. It experienced rapid growth from 2008 to 2018, outpacing the overall economy and showcasing high labor productivity, as biobased products impact various sectors, including food.
The paper states that the EU is a key player in the market, so there is an opportunity to strengthen and expand the biotechnology industry to drive economic growth, promote innovation, and address societal and environmental challenges.
Pauline Grimmer, Policy Manager at the GFI Europe, comments: “It’s great to see the Commission putting forward such an ambitious plan to modernise the EU’s economy, and recognise the measures needed to transform Europe’s biotechnology sectors.
“But while this is a great first step, for alternative protein startups to deliver on their potential to provide future-proof jobs and green growth, we now need to see this ambition translated into firm actions such as R&D funding, support to scale-up production and provide a clear and transparent regulatory framework.”