Across many huge industries, like construction, marine and agriculture, toxic biocides are used as antifouling agents to prevent micro- and macro-organism damaging surfaces. However such antifouling agents pose large environmental and societal burdens as they pollute the environment, harm ecosystems, are produced by fossil-based chemical synthesis or heavy metal extraction, and are hazardous to the health of workers, consumers and the public. Increased regulations and legislations regarding banning and lowering use of toxic antifouling agents is pushing industries to seek for green alternatives. However, no safe, eco-friendly and cost-competitive antifouling agents are currently available that meet the functional requirements to prevent attachment of organisms…until now. Cysbio have developed a proprietary cell-based manufacturing system for renewable production of sulfated compounds, of interest is the bio-based antifouling agent zosteric acid (ZA-bio). The team have leveraged advanced metabolic and enzyme engineering to optimize yields of ZA-bio, creating a cell factory system that can be upscaled to meet substantial chemical company demands. Cysbio enables a green and safe antifouling agent that is commercially viable for the first time, as ZA-bio is cost-competitive with existing toxic heavy metal and synthetic chemical alternatives. The ZABIO consortium consists a non-profit biological production upscaling manufacturer (Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant) and large multinational chemical and consumer goods company (Henkel) to fulfil the value chain and accelerate market entry of ZA-bio integrated products into the construction industry within two years (Q3 2022). As a result of this project ZA-bio will be commercially available as a chemical compound (sales by Cysbio) and initial contracts with Henkel will facilitate market growth by introduction of ZA-bio based sanitary sealants and façade coatings. The two year project will address EU health and environmental goals.

Bio-waste is a key waste stream in Europe with a high potential for contributing to a more circular economy. The Tech4Biowaste project will pave the way for deployment of bio-waste technologies and technology configurations by setting-up a database providing a comprehensive technology overview (TRL4-9) for the valorisation of bio-waste (food waste and garden and park waste) into value added applications including chemicals, energy and fuels, food ingredients, and materials. The database content will be determined jointly with actors across the bio-waste value chain. Technology providers can showcase new and emerging technologies, even at lower TRL. Technology searchers can analyse and compare bio-waste valorisation technologies. Both categories of users can assess their commercialisation potential through the associated decision support tool. The Tech4Biowaste database will be composed of unique features based on the latest IT technologies, including artificial intelligence, and use of Open Source software. In order to catalyse significant database usage and future growth, it directly builds on the BBEPP-led Pilots4U network and links with the NOVA-led (parallel-developed) Renewable Carbon platform. A hybrid model will be used to populate the database, combining inputs from the consortium’s publishers’ team, a community of volunteers, and automated scripts and tools („bots"). Tech4Biowaste will mobilise stakeholders (incl. intended users and contributors) for direct involvement (Co-creation, Trainings 1 Testing Panel, 1 Advisory Board) e.g. in the design of the database, in the development of a continuation and expansion scenario and finally for the Business Plan targeting sustained growth and continuity of the open platform.

Sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) are the only short-term alternative to fossil fuels in aviation. Considering the increased number of passengers forecasted in the near future, a massive increased in SAF production has been estimated in the years to come. To fulfill this increase in demand, the combination of existing and new renewable production chains is needed. Current SAF-producing pathways are at different levels of maturity, implementation or even commercialization. However, lowering the cost and supply chain development are key challenges for commercial-scale SAF deployment. Using biowastes as feedstock for SAF is challenging but necessary to make SAF competitive with fossil fuels. In this context, yeasts may be key players to generate economically-viable SAF intermediates (terpenes or fatty acids (FA)) in an environmentally-friendly way from biowaste. This SAF production by biological means is very new and presents a lot of remaining challenges and training gaps that have to be addressed. YAF research programme aims at; i) producing carbon sources from biowastes, ii) developing new yeast cell factories to produce SAF, iii) designing new bifunctional catalysts, iv) achieving efficient strategies for FA/terpenes extraction, and v) creating robust framework tailored to the scaling-up methodologies and life-cycle sustainability assessment of different SAF producing routes, which will support decision-making. To achieve this, the right integration of biology, biotechnology, chemical engineering and environmental sciences will be required. Thus, the prime training/networking aim of YAF is to train the next generation of researchers in a highly interdisciplinary and intersectorial research environment such that they can soundly address upcoming challenges concerning production yeast-based SAF. YAF has been designed to strengthen European research and innovation, enhancing research visibility and generating a critical mass to address European (and global) challenges

Sugar beet pulp (SBP) accounts for approx. 13 million tonnes in Europe and is a major residual stream from the sugar beet industry, which is currently valorised as low value feed and/or green gas. In order to increase the value of its side streams, PULP2VALUE developed multiple extraction techniques to isolate more valuable products from this large fraction of sugar beet pulp. Roughly 65% of the dry matter mass can be isolated as high value products being: microcellulose fibers (MCF) (33%), arabinose (16%) and galacturonic acid (16%). The overall objective of this project is to further establish the value chains based on MCF, arabinose (Ara) and galacturonic acid (GalA). By demonstrating an integrated and cost-effective cascading biorefinery system to refine sugar beet pulp, Cosun aims to significantly increase (20-50 times) the value of the sugar beet pulp by demonstrating applications for approximately 65% of its mass in high value markets. For each of these products PULP2VALUE identified multiple product market combinations (PMC’s). For the MCF fraction application supply chains towards detergents, personal care, oil & gas, paints & coatings and composites are developed. Throughout the years Cosun developed a pilot facility in which the state-of-the-art unit of operations were tested. Together with partners, Cosun is now planning to optimize, integrate and scale-up these processes to a demonstration scale to further supply product development in order to establish long lasting supply chains. The PULP2VALUE will target 9 new value chains resulting in a market potential of at least 350.000 tons and a potential revenue of 200 million euro. The PULP2VALUE makes available a mild and environmentally friendly biorefinery process for beet pulp compared to other biobased and fossil products. It will spur rural development in sugar beet growing districts by connecting them in new cross-sectoral value chains with the chemical and food industry.