BIOINNOVATION STRATEGIC AGENDA 1
- 2 - Figure 2. The resource-efficient processing
of a harvested tree. climate-smart products, such as wood products, buildings, furniture, pulp, cardboard, textiles, chemicals, fuels and energy. Of the products produced from forest raw materials in Sweden today, about 80 percent are exported.4 When forest raw material is processed on an industrial level, side streams arise in the form of sawdust, lignin and tall oil, for example, which in turn are further refined, see Figure 2. There is great potential for developing and streamlining both the extraction and further processing of these streams. Several investigations indicate that there are opportunities for increased returns from the forest. As part of this, one example is the ongoing forestry cooperation process, in which the Swedish Forestry Agency brings together a number of stakeholders in order to develop proposals for measures to improve forest production.5 Our fields are another important source of bioeconomic growth. Fields are mainly used to grow crops for feed and for food production, but some are also used for raw materials to make chemicals and fuels. Some examples of these raw materials are sugar-based or starch-based crops such as sugar beets, or oil-based crops such as rapeseed. In agriculture, residual streams with the potential for further processing also arise – for example, these can be straw, husk or seed cakes. There is also great potential in the biomass of the seas and the lakes. Aquatic organisms such as algae and sea squirts often contain high-quality protein, valuable enzymes, cellulose and other polymers that are not extensively recovered today. These may well grow in importance in the coming years. Residual streams arise from industries, agriculture and society. These are streams that consist of biomass in the form of packaging waste, textile waste, food waste and sewage sludge, for example. At the moment, many of these streams lead into energy recycling, with the exception of packaging and paper waste which is recycled in the form of recycled fibres. However, the value of residual streams can be upgraded through improved sorting and increased material recycling. 7