It’s the holiday season for US renewable chemicals

While the renewable chemicals industry continues to play second fiddle to biofuels when it comes to US government funding (it’s true!), the Biden Administration’s actions towards boosting the bioeconomy are setting off a flurry of activities on how renewable chemicals companies can dip in to these bioeconomy-related funding initiatives.

Just yesterday, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP)—in coordination with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a request for relevant data and information, including case studies, to help identify regulatory ambiguities, gaps, or uncertainties in the Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology, particularly as related to new and emerging biotechnology products.

The information provided will help regulatory agencies improve the clarity and efficiency of the regulatory processes for biotechnology products as described in Executive Order 14081, “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy.” The deadline is February 3.

According to the US Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technology Office (BETO), the National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative, will support its groundbreaking efforts to produce viable biofuels and bioproducts using sustainable sources of biomass and waste resources, and enable substantial investments to translate scientific discoveries into commercial applications. This executive order aligns with BETO priorities to:

• Leverage bioengineering, biomanufacturing, bioenergy, and biobased products to address the causes of climate change and reduce its impact,
• Use biotechnology and biomanufacturing to fortify a strong U.S. supply chain and drive U.S. global leadership in this sector,
• Invest in domestic infrastructure to accelerate bioenergy and bioproduct scientific advances to reduce commercialization hurdles and to create more U.S. jobs,
• Continue training young scientists and grow the diversity of the technical workforce,
• Stimulate economic growth by incentivizing and expanding biomanufacturing scale-up and capacity to bring bioproducts to market.

With the Executive Order, the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) would receive $3.46 billion, a historic level of funding, with $280 million for EERE’s BETO to fund R&D on converting biomass into clean, renewable fuels, chemicals, and products. The spending bill also supports using carbon dioxide from production plants, such as biorefineries, to produce higher-value fuels, chemicals, or materials.

For more information on this initiative, see the White House Factsheet and DOE’s Factsheet on Biotechnology & Biomanufacturing.

By the way, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) recently released a report recommending actions to promote the growth of the US bioeconomy in three key areas: boosting manufacturing capacity, addressing regulatory uncertainty and updating the US national strategy to meet the demands of the 21st century. The report recommends that agencies across the US government work to establish biomanufacturing infrastructure hubs with the resources and authorities necessary to support new bio-products moving from prototype to pilot-scale production. The relevant agencies are also advised to work together to build a network from new and existing biomanufacturing infrastructure hubs to support the further development of biomanufacturing processes and support programs across the spectrum of postsecondary training opportunities in this area.

To address regulatory uncertainty that novel, cross-cutting bioproducts face, PCAST recommends that regulatory agencies create both more clear and transparent review and approval processes.  PCAST further recommends establishing a cross-agency rapid response team of regulatory experts that would vet these cross-cutting products, helping those that are safe and potentially transformative reach the market more rapidly.

Finally, PCAST believes that a new, data-based, and adaptive national strategy is urgently needed to chart a course for the U.S. bioeconomy for the next decade. This strategy should consider the long-term economic, environmental, and societal benefits and liabilities of biotechnology, as well as the national security implications and ethical and legal issues.

I also wanted to share this Interactive Integrated Biorefinery (IBR) Map developed by BETO. The upgrades came as a part of an effort by BETO’s System Development and Integration (SDI) subprogram to highlight new awards within its diverse portfolio and to provide stakeholders with the means to easily access and aggregate data based on a variety of project characteristics.

Using the map, users can navigate around the United States to learn about the diverse portfolio of projects funded under the SDI umbrella. Clicking on a project’s icon will display an overview of the project. A more detailed list of project characteristics can be found in the sortable data table accompanying the interactive map. Through filters, users can sort project lists based on a wide range of metrics, including technology readiness level, Primary Feedstock, Conversion Technology type, Primary Product, the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) under which a project was awarded, and project location. The map will receive additional updates as the SDI portfolio grows and evolves.

PS
Can somebody tell BETO that I would love to help update their database on bio-based chemicals projects?

I wish all the GCB subscribers and followers Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!