On the first day of the summit, BIC Deputy Executive Director Marco Rupp presented key findings from BIC’s five lead market reports, published in July 2026, covering bio-based chemicals, plastics and fibre-based packaging, textiles, and policy recommendations. His message was clear: Europe needs targeted market-pull measures to close the green premium and turn its bio-based ambitions into market opportunities.
BIC Executive Director Philippe Mengal also delivered opening remarks at the workshop Empowering Primary Producers: Creating Value through Circular Bio-based Value Chains and Nature-Positive Systems, organised by the Rootlinks project, ReFarm Ireland and the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU). BIC welcomed the proposed Action Plan and reaffirmed its commitment to supporting collaboration between industry and primary producers. Philippe also highlighted the role of first-of-a-kind (FOAK) projects in bringing bio-based innovations to market and overcoming the barriers to industrial scale-up. BIC will soon publish a study examining how successful FOAK projects in Europe’s bio-based industries have addressed these challenges.
A key highlight was Plenary Session 4, which explored how European and national bioeconomy strategies can translate into markets, investment and tangible impact. BIC Chair of the Board Katariina Kemppainen, Senior Vice President R&D at Metsä Group, highlighted the importance of market demand in unlocking industrial investment. She stressed that commercial offtake contracts are essential to financing the pipeline of bio-based projects ready for deployment. The session also featured the launch of the Bio-based Europe Alliance (BEA), which aims to strengthen collaboration and stimulate demand for bio-based solutions.
Through its participation in GBS2026, BIC reaffirmed its commitment to building competitive bio-based value chains, mobilising investment and strengthening cooperation across the bioeconomy ecosystem. The message from Dublin was clear: ambitious strategies must be matched by market demand, investable projects and practical collaboration to deliver impact at scale.
