The European Commission adopted on 13th February 2012 a strategy to shift the European economy towards greater and more sustainable use of renewable resources. The Commission's strategy and action plan, "Innovating for Sustainable Growth: a Bioeconomy for Europe", outlines a coherent, cross-sectoral and inter-disciplinary approach to the issue.

The goal is a more innovative and low-emissions economy, reconciling demands for sustainable agriculture and fisheries, food security, and the sustainable use of renewable biological resources for industrial purposes, while ensuring biodiversity and environmental protection. The plan therefore focuses on three key aspects:
• developing new technologies and processes for the bioeconomy;
• developing markets and competitiveness in bioeconomy sectors;
• pushing policymakers and stakeholders to work more closely together.

The Strategy has three main pillars:
1. Investment in research, innovation, and skills for the bioeconomy.
2. Development of markets and competitiveness in bioeconomy sectors by a sustainable intensification of primary production, conversion of waste streams into value-added products, as well as mutual learning mechanisms for improved production and resource efficiency.
3. Reinforced policy coordination and stakeholder engagement, through the creation of a Bioeconomy Panel, a Bioeconomy Observatory and regular Stakeholder Conferences;

The strategy seeks synergies and complementarities with other policy areas, instruments, and funding sources which share and address the same objectives, such as the Cohesion Funds, the Common Agricultural and Fisheries Policies (CAP and CFP), the Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP), environmental, industrial, employment, energy and health policies. The Commission's proposal is one of the operational proposals under the Innovation Union and Resource-efficient Europe flagships of the EU 2020 strategy.

More information: http://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/press/press_packages/index_en.htm