Open-BIO - TU Berlin · Type of bio-based product European Bioplastics, Berlin, October 30th, 2014 106 54 50 50 39 77 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Bio-plastics Wood-based materials Bio-surfactants

www.open-bio.eu

Open-BIO Survey Results on the

acceptance of

bio-based products

Jan Peuckert & Rainer Quitzow

European Bioplastics,

Berlin, October 30th, 2014

© Technische Universität Berlin, 2014

Open-BIO



Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement no. 613677


Acceptance of bio-based products

Business

Expert Survey

Expert Survey

Delphi Approach Round 1

Expert Survey


Procurement

Expert Survey

Expert Survey


Expert Survey

Delphi approach Round 2

Consumers

Consumer Research (DLO-

LEI)

Qualitative research

Consumer focus groups

Quantitative research

Consumer survey

WP9: Social Acceptance



2-stage research approach on three target groups


Outline



Market Drivers and Barriers

Business expert survey results

Country differences

Summary / Discussion

Labelling and Public Procurement

Business expert opinions on labelling

Procurement expert survey results

Summary / Discussion




Business expert survey 324 respondents, mainly business representatives from 17 EU member states

>50% business

representatives

~1/3 France, ~1/3 Germany, ~1/3 other countries


Type of bio-based product



106

54 50 50

39

77

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Bio-plastics Wood-basedmaterials

Bio-surfactants Bio-lubricants Bio-solvents other bio-basedproducts or

materials

Which type of bio-based product does your organization produce or buy?

33%

Different product groups covered, but particular focus on bio-plastics


Business activities



72 61

27 16 16

1

63

52

21

11 14

125

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Production ofintermediate

bio-basedproducts or

materials

Production ofbio-based end-

products

Purchase ofintermediate

bio-basedproducts or

materials

Purchase of bio-based end-

products

Trade of bio-based products

or materials

None of theabove

Which of the following activities does your organization engage in?

share of bioplastics >50%

60% active in production or purchase of bio-based products


Reliance on bio-based sources



24 15

20

39

5 3

54

31 21

46

57

9

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

0 - 5% 5 - 10% 10 - 50% >50% not applicable no answer

To what extent does your organization already rely on bio-based sources (estimated)?

~50% ~30%

Responding bioplastic businesses strongly rely on bio-based sources


Expertise



61

35

10

73 107

37

0

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

yes somewhat no

Do you consider yourself an expert in the field of bio-based products?

respondents that engage in bioplastics other respondents

24

51 31

27

111

79

0

25

50

75

100

125

150

175

I have advancedprofessional experience.

I have some professionalexperience.

I have no professionalexperience.

How would you rate your professional experience in the area of product labelling and certification?

respondents that engage in bioplastics other respondents

>85% >66%

Strong expertise in bio-based products and in labelling and certification

~50% ~50% Bioplastics overrepresented among high-level experts

© Technische Universität Berlin, 2014 3,00

3,45

3,47

3,54

3,64

3,66

3,68

3,73

3,75

3,77

3,78

3,79

3,80

3,85

3,93

4,12

4,13

3,19

3,35

3,50

3,50

3,51

3,67

3,74

3,69

3,68

3,77

3,82

3,83

3,86

3,77

3,98

4,11

4,14

1 2 3 4 5

willingness to pay green premium

life-cycle cost savings for buyers (from purchase to disposal)

biodegradability / compostability

lower production cost

energy savings during production

reduction of environmental pollutants (other than CO2)

potential to attract new customers

improved performance

potential to source feedstock locally

recyclability

new or added functionality

utilization of waste products

reduced human toxicity

compliance with environmental regulation

savings in CO2 emissions

independence from fossil fuels

positive public image

How would you rate the importance of the following factors as drivers of the future development of the B2B market for bio-based products? (1 = very low, 5 = very high)

Market Drivers



Performance-related aspects

are more important as drivers

than cost-related aspects

The following four items

relate to environmental

issues, most importantly

climate change.

Positive public image is the most

important market driver, followed

by independence of fossil sources

Willingness to pay

green premium is the

least important driver.

Bio-degradability

and compostability

are relatively

unimportant.

The ranking is almost the same for the subgroup of

respondents with a background in bioplastics.




Country differences Statistical significance depends on respondent group sizes and observed variance

Bio-degradability and compostability is the second most important driver for Italian experts.

Recyclability is the third most important driver for Italian experts.

► Italia: B2B market is strongly linked to discussions on end-of-life options.





Independence from fossil resources is the most important driver for French experts.

French experts put particular importance on potential to source feedstock locally.

► France: independence from foreign fossil resources and to develop domestic supply chains.






Dutch experts place lower level of importance to a number of environment-related items.

Performance and functionality-related items ranked relatively high among Dutch experts.

► The Netherlands: bio-based economy is more strongly driven by (low carbon) technology development.

► France: independence from foreign fossil resources and to develop domestic supply chains.


© Technische Universität Berlin, 2014 3,00

3,03

3,09

3,21

3,22

3,38

3,42

3,49

3,51

3,59

3,63

3,71

3,72

3,78

3,79

3,86

4,14

2,96

2,88

3,00

3,36

3,09

3,40

3,32

3,69

3,46

3,52

3,76

3,60

3,54

3,77

3,46

3,71

4,06

1 2 3 4 5

Social impacts of feedstock production

Increased ecotoxicity and negative effects on the eco-system

Concerns regarding GMOs in feedstock production

Incompatibility with existing recycling schemes

Environmental impacts of feedstock production

Uncertainty regarding environmental benefits

Limited local feedstock availability

Difficulty in communicating environmental benefits

Higher life-cycle costs to buyers (from purchase to disposal)

Incompatibility with existing supply arrangements or high replacement costs

Lack of public awareness about bio-based products

Uncertainty about available feedstock quantity and quality

Low performance or uncertainty regarding performance

Unsupportive regulatory environment

Volatility of feedstock prices

Uncertainty about future regulation

Higher cost of production

How would you rate the importance of the following factors as barriers to the future development of the B2B market for bio-based products? (1 = very low, 5 = very high)

Market Barriers



Volatility of feedstock

prices drops to rank 10.

Lack of public awareness

about bio-based products

moves up to rank 3.

Difficulty in communicating

environmental benefits

moves up to rank 5.

Items related to

regulation and public

support are among the

most important barriers.

Higher production cost is the

most important market barrier.

Social impacts of

feedstock production is

the least important barrier.

Items related to

environmental

benefits are

relatively

unimportant.

The ranking slightly differs for the subgroup of

respondents with a background in bioplastics.

Lack of public awareness

ranks relatively high.


Discussion of drivers and barriers

Bio-based seem to appreciate a positive public image, but at the same time the lack of public awareness is considered as an important market barrier.

Social impacts of feedstock production seem not to pose an important barrier.

Higher production costs are considered to be the main barrier for the future development of the B2B market for bio-based products.

The willingness to pay a green premium does not seem to be sufficiently strong to compensate for higher production cost across the whole industry.

Europe’s bio-based economy has a variety of country-specific drivers.

Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement




A European label for bio-

based products?





A European label for bio-based products?


The creation of a European label for bio-based products is important for promoting the market uptake of bio-based products.

All respondents Respondents with a background in bio-plastics

A European label for bio-based products should also require compliance with key environmental criteria (in addition to criteria on bio-based content). Only bio-based products which comply with the defined environmental criteria should be able to carry the label.

A European label for bio-based products should also require compliance with sustainability criteria related to the feedstock used. Only bio-based products which comply with these sustainability criteria should be able to carry the label.

A European label for bio-based products should be integrated within the existing EU Ecolabel.

A European label for bio-based products should only require compliance with criteria on bio-based content. Other criteria – if included - should be optional.




Optional label features

• „Sustainable feedstock

production“ finds the highest

level of support – closely

followed by recylability

• „GMO-free feedstock“ finds

the lowest level of support –

but still over 50 percent!




Optional label features

• Italian respondents place

particular emphasis on

„compostability“




Key findings

The majority of experts favors a European bio-

based label with additional requirements

regarding the sustainability of feedstock and other

environmental issues.

There is a large degree of uncertainty regarding

the possibility of integrating a bio-based label in

the EU Ecolabel.





Survey on public

procurement and bio-based

products





Who answered the survey?

• 171 completed questionnaires

• Ca. 2/3 of respondents are directly involved in public procurement

• Well-balanced section across geographic / administrative levels:

• Dominance of German respondents (45%), followed by Italy (12%), France (8%),

Netherlands (6%)




Who answered the survey?

• More than 40% of the respondents are not sure about the meaning of “bio-based products”:

• More than a third of respondents claim to be experts in the filed of green public procurement (GPP)

• In contrast, there is little expertise in the field of innovation-oriented public procurement (IPP)




Green public procurement

and innovation-oriented

public procurement

• Green public procurement practices are far more institutionalized than innovation-oriented public procurement

practices




Bio-based content in public

procurement practices

• Only 36% of organizations allow for specifications on bio-based

content

• Where possible, this can usually be justified within the context of GPP (88%) or innovation-oriented public procurement (72%)




Importance of

environmental aspects in

green public procurement

• Savings in CO2 and energy-efficiency represent the most

important issues

• Bio-based content does not represent an important environmental aspect in green public procurement

The following item represents an important

issue for consideration in the current practice

of green public procurement.




Measures to support the

procurement of bio-based

products

• Better guidance on how to compare bio-based and

conventional products is considered important

• A new label for bio-based products receives relatively little support

Respondents were ask to select up to four items from

a list of 13 measures. The graph above represents the number of votes per item.




Key findings

Bio-based content alone is not considered a valid criteria

within in most green public procurement schemes.

Demonstrating the overall environmental benefits – in

particular regarding CO2 savings - of bio-based products vis-

à-vis conventional products represents a possible avenue for

boosting the uptake of bio-based products in green public

procurement.

The integration of criteria on bio-based content appears to

be useful but not crucial for promoting the uptake of bio-

based products in green public procurement.

A special label for bio-based products is not viewed as an

important measure for promoting the uptake of bio-based

products in green public procurement.




Documents

Open-BIO - TU Berlin · Type of bio-based product European Bioplastics, Berlin, October 30th, 2014 106 54 50 50 39 77 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Bio-plastics Wood-based materials Bio-surfactants