description
- The ultimate objective is to explore the potential of non-food crops, which can be domestically grown in EU27 context, for selected industrial applications, namely oils, fibers, resins, pharmaceuticals and other specialty products and outline and prioritise crops-to-products schemes, suitable for the different Member States, which will support sustainable, economic viable and competitive European bio-based industry and agriculture. The proposed project will be carried in 8WPs. WP1 will report on non-food crops for selected industrial applications. Information will refer to main physical traits, cultivation areas, inputs, supply and logistics, yields, quality issues. WP2 will identify current molecular genetics technologies and suggest their potential applications in a crop-specific manner to address a wide range of breeding constraints. Improvement of non-food crops will entail breeding for agronomically important traits i.e yield and tolerance to abiotic and biotic conditions. WP3 will explore the potential and feasibility of the European industry to make high-value biobased products from non-food crosp and biotechnological routes. WP4 will perform supply chain cost analysis, identify best business opportunities, and assess the socio-economic impacts of selected crop-to-product schemes at EU-27, regional and country levels. WP5 will assess selected production and environmental impacts and identify a ‘core’ list of standards and criteria for the environmental and socio-economic sustainability of selected crops-to-product schemes in a global and country-specific perspective. WP6 will perform an integrated technical, environmental, and economic assessment to help selecting and prioritising non-food crops. WP7 will address dissemination issues. The expected output is to identify whether and under which terms Europe has the potential and the technical competence to develop a competitive bio-industry fed by a sustainable agriculture.