www.open-bio.eu
Open-Bio Results of the
Business Survey
WP9: Social Acceptance
January 14, 2015
14/01/2015
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles Who answered the survey?
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles (1/5) – Country
• 324 completed questionnaires
• Coverage of 17 EU member states
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles (2/5) – Organization
• More than 50% are business representatives
• Relatively balanced distribution of firm size
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• 60% of
respondents
active in
production or
purchase of bio-
based products
• All product
groups well-
represented with
particular focus
on bio-plastics
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles (3/5) – Business activities
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles (4/5) – Bio-based industry involvement
• Higher proportion of respondents with either core activity in bio-
based industry or only marginal involvement
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Respondents profiles (5/5) – Expertise
• More than 85% claimed to have at least some expertise in bio-
based products
• 66% claimed to have at least some expertise in labelling
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Acceptance in the business-
to-business market Market Drivers
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Market Drivers, ranked by average of all responses
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4,13
4,12
3,93
3,85
3,80
3,79
3,78
3,77
3,75
3,73
3,68
3,66
3,64
3,54
3,47
3,45
3,00
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Positive public image
Independence from fossil fuels
Savings in CO2 emissions
Compliance with environmental regulation
Reduced human toxicity
Utilization of waste products
New or added functionality
Recyclability
Potential to source feedstock locally
Improved performance
Potential to attract new customers
Reduction of environmental pollutants (other than CO2)
Energy savings during production
Lower production cost
Biodegradability / compostability
Life-cycle cost savings for buyers (from purchase to disposal)
Willingness to pay green premium
This figure depicts estimated means and standard errors for the entire sample of respondents (horizontal lines) and for each group separately
(circles with vertical bars). Hollow circles indicate group means that significantly differ based on two-sided tests at the 0.05 level in at least one
pairwise comparison. Bonferroni correction is used to adjust p values for multiple comparisons.
Market Drivers – Overview on response patterns based on the
country of the respondents’ work places
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Acceptance in the business-
to-business market Market Barriers
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Market Barriers, ranked by average of all responses
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4,14
3,86
3,79
3,78
3,72
3,71
3,63
3,59
3,51
3,49
3,42
3,38
3,22
3,21
3,09
3,03
3,00
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
Higher cost of production
Uncertainty about future regulation
Volatility of feedstock prices
Unsupportive regulatory environment
Low performance or uncertainty regarding performance
Uncertainty about available feedstock quantity and quality
Lack of public awareness about bio-based products
Incompatibility with existing supply arrangementsor high replacement costs
Higher life-cycle costs to buyers (from purchase to disposal)
Difficulty in communicating environmental benefits
Limited local feedstock availability
Uncertainty regarding environmental benefits
Environmental impacts of feedstock production
Incompatibility with existing recycling schemes
Concerns regarding GMOs in feedstock production
Increased ecotoxicity and negative effects on the eco-system
Social impacts of feedstock production
Market Barriers – Overview on response patterns based on the
level of expertise indicated by the respondents
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Y = respondents with expertise in the field of bio-based products, S = respondents with somewhat expertise in the field of bio-based products,
N = respondents without expertise in the field of bio-based products
This figure depicts estimated means and standard errors for the entire sample of respondents (horizontal lines) and for each group separately
(circles with vertical bars). Hollow circles indicate group means that significantly differ based on two-sided tests at the 0.05 level in at least one
pairwise comparison. Bonferroni correction is used to adjust p values for multiple comparisons.
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
Labelling A European label for bio-based products
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4
52
14
15
17
13
73
24
26
29
38
72
58
54
116
114
77
109
114
72
154
45
117
113
82
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
The creation of a European label for bio-based products is importantfor promoting the market for bio-based products.
A European label for bio-based products should only requirecompliance with criteria on bio-based content. Other criteria - if
included - should be optional.
A European label for bio-based products should also requirecompliance with key environmental criteria (in addition to criteria
on bio-based content). Only bio-based products which comply withthe defined environmental criteria should be able to carry the
A European label for bio-based products should also requirecompliance with sustainability criteria related to the bio-based
feedstock used. Only bio-based products which comply with thesesustainability criteria should be able to carry the label.
A European label for bio-based products should be integrated withinthe existing EU Ecolabel.
A European label for bio-based products strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree
Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
A European label for bio-based products (1/2)
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
A European label for bio-based products (2/2)
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15
19
27
29
57
17
20
23
33
27
51
50
60
72
76
116
118
113
101
78
121
112
96
84
79
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
… sustainable feedstock production.
… recyclability.
… biodegradability.
… compostability.
… the use of GMO-free feedstock.
A European label for bio-based products should offer optional icons and label features to indicate ...
strongly disagree disagree neutral agree strongly agree
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Open-Bio: Opening bio-based markets via standards, labelling and procurement
This figure depicts estimated means and standard errors for the entire sample of respondents (horizontal lines) and for each group separately (circles with vertical bars). Hollow circles indicate group means that significantly differ based on two-
sided tests at the 0.05 level in at least one pairwise comparison. Bonferroni correction is used to adjust p values for multiple comparisons.
Optional label features – Overview on response patterns based
on the country of the respondents’ work places