Primer on Bioproducts - BIOCAP Canada

Why Bioproducts Now?In the past 50 years, our understanding of the world and itsvarious life forms has changed in profound ways. Science andtechnology are moving at a rapid pace and improving ourknowledge of biology at the molecular level. Developments in thebiological and life sciences, as well as thermo-chemistry, have ledto discoveries of new ways to break down and use biologicalmaterials. Research is making possible new industrial productsand processes that use biomass instead of fossil fuels.From these new methods and materials, biobased fuels,bioplastics and biobased health products are emerging. Thesebioproducts could mark the beginning of a shift to a biobasedeconomy that eventually relies on renewable biological materialsto supply energy, chemicals and other products.Associated with this shift is an increasing interest by academia,industry and governments in exploring whether a biobasedeconomy could offer Canada an opportunity to build on ourexisting resource strengths and industries, while reducingpollution and enhancing economic development in rural areas.Scientists and governments around the world are concernedabout gases generated from the use of fossil fuels. These gases(including billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide, or CO 2) preventheat from leaving the Earth’s atmosphere and are causing globalclimate change, the effects of which include rising temperaturesand increasingly severe weather. Scientists have come torecognize the important role that plants play in absorbing andregulating the concentration of global greenhouse gases.BiomassEach year, according to estimatesby Stanford University biologistPeter Vitousek and his colleagues,approximately 224 billion tonnes ofnew biomass (by dry weight) aregenerated by photosynthetic plantsworldwide. Biomass currentlyprovides about 15 per cent of theenergy used by people around theworld and meets 35 per cent of theenergy needs of developingcountries. In Canada, millions oftonnes of biomass are harvestedevery year as trees and crops fromforests and farms. While biomasscurrently supplies just six per centof Canada’s primary energydemand, the BIOCAP CanadaFoundation estimates that, ifcollecting and processing it werefeasible, the amount of unusedbiomass left on fields and forestcut sites after harvest could supply27 per cent of the energy we nowget from fossil fuels.Industry and governments are examining whether a Canadianbiobased economy — one developed to minimize the adverseenvironmental and social impacts of bioproducts — could helpreduce our overall greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, the use ofPRIMER ON BIOPRODUCTS9