The European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF) clearly exceeded its target of 250 million euros at the closing of the subscription period. Shortly before Christmas, the fund had paused at around 200 million euros. Now, the international ECBF team has gained the support of a number of additional investors.

The bioeconomy can make a decisive contribution to the implementation of the global sustainability goals of the United Nations. However, a bio-based economy is not sustainable per se and in some cases there may even be conflicting goals.

Market analyses show: Fossil plastics are slowly becoming less common. Even if products made from bioplastics are still a niche, experts expect significant growth in the coming years. But bioplastics are only sustainable if they are made from renewable raw and residual materials.

The development and production of enzymes and bioprocesses are the strengths of the Leipzig-based biotech company c-LEcta. In 2018, a financing round laid the foundation for establishing large-scale production of enzymes. Last year, the Leipzig-based company cracked the €10 million revenue mark and announced a move to a yet-to-be-built biotechnology campus building.

Whether dishwashing detergents, laundry producte or household cleaners: When it comes to dirt, manufacturers rely on surfactants. Until now, the majority of these surfactants have been produced synthetically. They are based on petroleum, are often not very skin-friendly and usually pollute the environment. But the trend is moving toward biosurfactants. These are produced by microorganisms from renewable raw materials and are biodegradable.

On February 1, 2022, the German Brain Biotech AG announced the acquisition of Breatec B.V. including the Comix activities. The Dutch distributor, formulator and blender of functional food ingredients is primarily intended to expand the Brain Group's enzyme portfolio and open up new market fields.

Casein and whey protein are essential for the characteristic taste and texture of cheese made from animal milk. Vegan cheese alternatives based on plant proteins have struggled to keep up in this regard. Berlin-based food tech start-up Formo has developed a biotechnological process that enables these milk proteins to be produced in the laboratory. Formo uses microorganisms to produce casein and whey protein. These have been converted so that yeasts produce the milk proteins.

Faster healing of damaged nerves and muscles - that's what researchers at the University of Bayreuth expect from specially spun fibers made from biotechnologically produced spider silk. Spider silk is non-toxic, well tolerated by the body and hardly colonized by microbes. At the same time, the material is tough, strong and biodegradable. For this reason, medicine is already testing it to create a support scaffold on which damaged nerve cells can regrow. So far, however, this process is still taking a very long time.