Biomass For Future

PROJECT:

BFF aims at establishing local value chains for miscanthus and sorghum biomass and at developing new dedicated varieties and cropping systems for sustainable production of lignocellulosic biomass. These varieties will combine improved yield, limited environmental footprint and a composition tailored for industrial uses.

To reach the combined goals, the project should catalyze technological, economic and territorial breakthroughs.

Technological breakthroughs : 

• Domestication of dedicated ligno-cellulosic biomass feedstock varieties starting from virtually wild species (miscanthus) or crop species with no selection history for biomass-related traits (sorghum).
• Acceleration of the domestication process taking advantage of recent breakthroughs in genome sequencing, association genetics, comparative genomics, biotechnology, high throughput anatomical and chemical phenotyping and mathematical modeling.
• Definition of the optimal feedstock/valorization combination through the association of specialists in plant biology, ecophysiology, genomics, material science and life cycle analysis, agronomists, breeders, farmers and process engineers.
• Development of new technologies for the production of ligno-cellulosic biomass-based construction materials and composites.

Economic breakthroughs :

• Promoting the establishment of local, economically viable industries by creating incentives for farmers (reliable demand for biomass, availability of optimized varieties, agronomic practices and logistics) and industry (reliable supply of guaranteed-quality biomass, novel bioproducts).

Territorial breakthroughs :

• Promoting the development of a new local green economy through the establishment of a network of stakeholders for a given territory (farmers, industry, scientists, engineers, local authorities and citizens)
• Contributing to the rehabilitation of “marginal” lands (polluted sites, water catchment areas, fallow land)
• Key role of local authorities in setting up value chains with decision-making on local economic development, provision of infrastructure and testing grounds, support to farmers and communication)