German forestry and timber research is strategically realigning itself with forest living labs in the Harz Mountains and Lower Bavaria. The SURVEY joint project combines scientific expertise and practical experience in an interdisciplinary approach.
At the 13th International Bioeconomy Conference in Halle, the spotlight was on the role of the bioeconomy in a world shaped by overlapping crises and evolving geopolitical priorities. In a global economy that is increasingly fragile, companies are under pressure to future-proof their operations - while also confronting the complexities of transitioning away from fossil-based systems.
Researchers show how digitalisation can also make small farms ready to compete.
With the opening of a new technology centre in the US state of Wisconsin, Düsseldorf-based plant manufacturer GEA is taking a further step towards advancing food innovations based on alternative proteins.
Using the Augsburg region as an example, a research consortium is showing how plastics can be recycled and replaced by bio-based plastics.
Magdeburg chemists are working with partners to research solvents made from renewable raw materials in order to replace petroleum-based substances and make chemical processes recyclable. The work is supported by the German Research Foundation.
A study by the European Alliance for Regenerative Agriculture shows that regenerative farming can achieve yields that are comparable to or even higher than those of conventional agriculture. It is considered to be the world's largest study of regenerative farming systems carried out by farmers to date.
The fungal disease yellow rust jeopardises wheat cultivation worldwide. Researchers at the University of Zurich have now discovered genes with natural resistance in Asian wheat varieties. These could help to breed robust wheat in the future and thus strengthen global food security.
With funding totalling 11 million euros from the British innovation agency ARIA, the Potsdam MPI of Molecular Plant Physiology is launching the SyncSol project: a universal plant genome is to make crops more efficient, climate-resilient and pharmaceutically usable.
A long-term study by the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart shows that agroforestry makes agricultural systems in temperate climate zones more resilient to climate risks. It therefore represents a resilient and sustainable alternative to conventional agriculture in Europe.
An international research team involving Graz University of Technology is working on integrating microorganisms into facade paints. The aim is to protect the exterior walls of buildings, bind CO2 and break down air pollutants.
Photovoltaics on agricultural land is more accepted by the population than solar installations on unused open land. This is the result of a survey conducted by the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn.
The Leibniz Research Network ‘Green Nutrition - Healthy Society’ provides recommendations for the reorganisation of food and agricultural systems, taking sustainability and resilience into account.
The Cologne-based start-up SenseUP has concluded seed financing totalling 2.4 million euros. It will use the capital to drive forward its research activities in order to bring new biopesticides to market maturity.
How can the green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii be reliably cultivated in the laboratory? - A handbook by researchers from Bayreuth and Göttingen provides answers.
Researchers were able to clarify how the oil-eating marine bacterium Alcanivorax borkumensis synthesises a natural detergent to destroy the alkanes contained in crude oil.
Investment in the production of alternative proteins reached a new high in Germany last year. This is confirmed by the State of the Industry Reports of the Good Food Institute (GFI) Europe.
The University of Geisenheim is participating in the European HydroSoilWise project to find solutions for climate-resilient soils in horticulture and agriculture.
The European Space Agency ESA has launched its BIOMASS earth observation satellite to measure forests.
The European environmental and climate protection programme LIFE has launched a new funding round. Bioeconomy projects can now apply to the ‘Circular Economy and Quality of Life’ sub-programme.
Together with a Ukrainian partner, the Cologne-based company PAPACKS has established the first scalable supply chain for certified industrial hemp.
The discovery of the PHL7 enzyme was the starting point for the founding of the Leipzig-based start-up ESTER Biotech.
Researchers at the University of Hohenheim have developed two tools for the use of agricultural side streams in order to recognize and optimally exploit their potential.
In the SHAPE project, researchers want to specifically enrich humus with microorganisms in order to strengthen plants and make soils more fertile.
The second REWE Green Farming centre in Germany will be built in Berlin-Lankwitz by spring 2026. In future, salad mixes will be harvested all year round in the glass roof farm.
Researchers at Anhalt University of Applied Sciences are investigating how the protein content in oats can be optimized and thus used as an alternative protein source.
In the interdisciplinary BioSHIP project, industry and science are working together to prevent the fouling of ship parts with biodegradable antifouling coatings.
Researchers at the August-Wilhelm Scheer Institute want to make the breeding of insects more efficient, resource-saving and comprehensible by expanding the InsectAI technology platform.
The Volkswagen Foundation is supporting nine projects that address closed raw material-product cycles with a total of 11.6 million euros - including innovations for the bioeconomy.
Not only legumes, but also crops such as sunflowers are suitable as catch crops to remove pollutants from agricultural soils. This is shown in a study by the Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research.
An international research team has deciphered how legumes control the symbiotic relationship with bacteria in their root nodules via signaling pathways.
Growing biomass on rewetted moors and generating electricity at the same time: the feasibility of this innovative concept is currently being investigated in the MoorPower project.
On March 24, the first demonstration plant that converts biogas from wastewater into climate-neutral methanol was put into operation on the site of the Mannheim sewage treatment plant.
Würzburg researchers have synthesized four dye molecules from photosynthesis in plant cells and thus artificially recreated one of the first steps of the natural metabolic pathway.
Max Planck researchers have functionalized microalgae with chitosan and magnetic nanoparticles in such a way that the movement of the unicellular organisms can be controlled - even through human tissue.
As part of an EU project, researchers at Trier University are developing digital solutions to advise winegrowers on soil protection.
A team led by Max Planck researcher Caroline Gutjahr from Potsdam has been able to clarify how plants control the symbiosis with fungi under stress conditions.
The Joachim Herz Stiftung is supporting three research teams with its new innovate! Fund with up to 1 million euros each. They are looking for innovative approaches that make biogenic resources usable.
For the first time, an international research team has been able to optimize synthetic carbon fixation to such an extent that it works more efficiently than natural metabolic pathways.
Berlin researchers provide the data basis for including human excreta in the list of permitted source materials in the Fertilizer Ordinance.
A Bavarian scientific team has researched how plant protection products can be applied selectively and automatically using drones and artificial intelligence. The challenges and results have now been published.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging has developed and trialled a new bio-based, recyclable packaging film for food in collaboration with the Albstadt-Sigmaringen University of Applied Sciences.
As part of a Europe-wide project, a research team from Jülich has developed a bacterium that can convert various nylon building blocks into valuable substances – a new approach to combating plastic pollution.
The start-up Kynda is working on the development of meat substitutes made from mushroom mycelium. It has now received funding totalling 3 million euros. The investors are EnjoyVenture, the PHW Group and Clima Now.
Innovative cell culture systems that are set to revolutionise production processes in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry – the start-up Green Elephant Biotech is now receiving support from Bürkert Fluid Control Systems for this vision.
An international research team with the participation of GEOMAR researchers from Kiel is searching for robust microorganisms in extreme habitats on Earth in order to accelerate biotechnological applications.
A total of 14 clusters from various European countries, including Germany, have joined forces to promote a circular and sustainable bioeconomy.
The world's first tampon made from seaweed from Berlin start-up Vyld has passed the certification hurdle and has recently started to make its way into the country's first sanitary facilities.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, large areas of moorland are to be rewetted by 2027 and new options for utilising paludiculture tested.
Insect biotechnology in Giessen is getting a boost: the Fraunhofer IME has announced that the start-up Endosolutions is to set up at the research centre and breed insects on a large scale.
In the EU project BioFibreLoop, researchers are developing textile patterns and coatings made from renewable and recyclable materials - also for outdoor clothing.
The BMBF-funded junior research group TRABBI has used artificial intelligence (AI) to create a global overview of over 5.6 million bioeconomy-related patents for bio-based products, services and processes.
Pine cones served researchers from Stuttgart and Freiburg as a model for a new bio-based shading system for building facades that adapts itself to the weather and is energy self-sufficient.
In the joint research project ‘Bioshoreline’, researchers have developed filters made of biodegradable geotextiles to protect river banks without negatively impacting ecosystems in the future.
The Berlin-based food tech start-up Formo is receiving 35 million euros from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the further development of its technology for the microbial production of animal-free dairy products.
In the H2Wood – BlackForest project, Fraunhofer researchers and partners produced biohydrogen using bacteria and microalgae and obtained carbon-based by-products such as lignin and starch.
Researchers in Jena have been able to clarify how the soil fungus Mortierella alpina naturally protects plants from predators and could thus make agriculture more sustainable.
At the 17th Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) in Berlin, agricultural and food policy experts will be looking for solutions on how to make the bioeconomy sustainable in order to secure the world's food supply and combat climate crises.
Fraunhofer researchers provide evidence that plants from paludiculture are also suitable for the production of packaging and can therefore replace wood as a raw material for paper production.
Bioprocess engineers at TU Berlin are showing how fish farming in aquacultures can become more sustainable. Omega-3 fatty acids for fish feed were obtained from plant residues and with the help of bacteria and algae, which can replace fishmeal and fish oil.
