SciSustain
Bio-based materials have emerged as alternatives to petroleum-derived materials particularly for package products which gain substantial attention due to the unprecedented demand. Changes in the regulatory framework, especially in the European Union, are underscoring the critical need to examine the potential of bio-based materials used in food packaging applications. A downside of most alternatives to fossil sources, such as producing wood-based films, is the uncertainty in scaling up innovations that can compete with commercial counterparts. Under the SciSustain (Science Translation Framework for Sustainable Bioproducts Innovation) project, researchers and the industry are working together to provide science-based decision-making contributions to improve the likelihood that innovations leave the lab and reach commercial implementation.
SciSustain project aims to address the following three research questions:
- How to estimate the potential long-term benefits and effects of today’s proposed bioproduct solutions?
- How can sustainable bioproduct innovations be supported from research ideation and basic and applied research stages?
- How and what can assist sustainable bioproduct innovations in becoming a commercial reality faster (being better prepared for overcoming a first-of-a-kind valley of death)?
The central hypothesis is that sustainability assessments could support science-backed feedback loop, guiding and lighting the path of innovation feedback loop, guiding predictive tools, commercialization strategies, and support mechanisms, the research aims to create a framework that enhances the viability and impact of sustainable bio-based innovations.
In SciSustain Project, leading Finnish companies in the packaging value chain join forces to secure and strengthen their leadership on the recyclability of existing packaging solutions and developing new products. The main benefit to the companies is the holistic sustainability assessment of their innovations in parallel or built onto existing technical research—resulting in evidence to support research and investment directions towards competitive alternative packaging solutions. On the scientific and societal domains, the results should impact the global packaging value chain and serve as a tool to accelerate the development of sustainable bioproducts to reach commercial scale.
People in SciSustain:
Ouwen He - Postdoctoral researcher focusing on framework development
Vida Hardjono - A value chain approach for supporting circular bio-based innovations (co-founded by BIC)
Karam Moussa - Charting the Transition and Unlocking the Commercial Pathways of Cellulosic Films for Packaging Applications​ (co-founded by BIC)
Waleed Mehmood - Exploring the value chain of regenerated carbamated cellulosic films for sustainable packaging in circular bioeconomy (co-founded by BIC)