Publications - United Kingdom A strategy for non-food crops and uses - creating value from renewable materials

Website: www.defra.gov.uk/farm/acu/pdf/nfc-strategy.pdf




To find similar Items, click on a keyword below:
Crops for Biopolymers/Gums : Crops for Solid Biofuels : National Activities - UK



A strategy for non-food crops and uses - creating value from renewable materials

This publication deals with the British Goverment's strategy for increasing use of agricultural raw materials for the production of industrial feedstock for manufacture of a wide range of non-food products.

The full text is available as a PDF

The following information is reproduced from the SUMMARY:

The (UK) Government is committed to sustainable development. Renewable materials, produced by agriculture as feedstocks for industry and energy, will play a vital part. Plants sustain life and have amazing diversity of form and function. Agriculture, manufacturing industry, end-user businesses and the science base can work together in using this diversity to deliver benefits for the economy, the environment and society.

Crops provide renewable materials which can substitute for fossil and mineral materials and so reduce depletion of the earth€s resources. In addition they can

• Benefit the environment by reducing greenhouse gases, cutting waste and pollution, helping biodiversity and prudent use of natural resources
• Improve the economic competitiveness of industry through development of new markets and products
• Produce social benefits by stimulating rural communities through establishment of local industries and providing new markets for farmers.

The long-term vision of this strategy is that a significant proportion of demand for energy and raw materials should be met through the commercial exploitation of science from crops, in a way which stimulates innovation and the rural economy, enhances biodiversity, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and waste, particularly biodegradable waste going to landfill, and slows depletion of finite natural resources.

These potential gains are extremely significant, but to realise them a concerted approach is needed to build the necessary links between science, agriculture and industry, to disseminate knowledge and encourage changes both in industrial practice and in society. Some non-food crop uses such as textiles are widely known. Others may be less familiar such as plastics made from starch-based polymers. There are implications for consumer behaviour, for example in choice of "green" products, and co-operating with waste disposal strategies to realise the benefits of biodegradable materials.

Wider understanding of these issues is an important aim of the strategy. The Strategy will draw on experience gained in the DTI/Defra Framework for Sustainable Consumption and Production. The strategy for non-food crops needs to be viewed as part of a wider agenda for innovation and diversification in agriculture and industry to enhance the UK's competitive performance, in a way which contributes to environmental objectives. Non-food uses of crops will develop in new directions as science and technology advance and environmental factors and legislation change. Bioscience applications can have an important role in areas such as conversion of crop materials to chemical feedstocks and development of high value products such as pharmaceuticals where the UK has particular strengths.

Realising the potential benefits of non-food crops depends crucially on the development of markets, with products competing effectively on cost as well as environmental grounds, to pull innovation through to commercial application. This is not just about novel crops but also existing mainstream arable crops. At the farming end of the supply chain producers will be more inclined to move into non-food markets if the returns are attractive compared with other potential uses of the land. The Common Agricultural Policy reforms to be implemented in 2005 provide a new stimulus to diversification which may provide significant opportunities for non-food markets for crops.

The building of supply chains, and delivery generally of the strategy's objectives, relies on a cohesive plan of action combining incentives, regulation, research and other forms of analysis, information and promotion. The successful development of markets depends on actions by industry, but within EU constraints on state aids and single market rules, the Government will provide direct incentives, and indirect ones for example through procurement policies, to encourage non-food uses of crops where there are clear advantages for sustainability. The Government takes a strong responsibility for ensuring delivery of the benefits set out here, as these outcomes are public goods from which the nation will benefit, in terms of environmental, social and economic advance.

In the immediate future the Government is taking a series of actions to:

• Increase public funding of research on non-food crops and stimulate projects jointly funded with industry, and establish a major programme of demonstration projects
• Apply a concerted push to develop biomass as a key contributor to the renewable energy targets
• Set indicative targets for biofuels sales for road transport, following public consultation on implementation of the EU Biofuels Directive
• Use the CAP reform agreement to stimulate diversity in production
• Build the operations of the National Non-Food Crops Centre
• Establish workstreams to take forward key focus areas emerging from previous research and demonstrations and the recommendations of the Government-Industry Forum on Non-Food Uses of Crops
• Encourage use of crop-derived materials, where these are shown to have advantages for sustainability, through public procurement policies
• Develop regional strategies and networks to disseminate actions and good practice.

The Government has worked with stakeholders in producing this strategy and will take a strong lead in driving forward further developments for non-food crops. Because of the cross-cutting nature of the subject the strategy is published jointly by Defra and DTI with support of all other interested Government departments. As agriculture is a devolved activity the strategy relates to England but is relevant to sustainable development policies generally and some of the measures and policies discussed such as fiscal measures apply to the whole UK.

As renewable materials from crops have been promoted for a number of years and technological change is continuous this strategy has to be defined in the context of and alongside existing activity. It will therefore be made up of actions which are already in hand and those which need to be put in place. Within the strategy there are key strands:

• Consumers need to be able to make informed choices and raising awareness of the potential benefits of the use and disposal of non-food crops is important for success
• Raising industry awareness and promoting emerging opportunities and markets so that new products, processes and supply chains can develop
• Exploiting technology development and ensuring the UK's world-class science base is engaged
• Undertaking the 'blue sky' thinking needed to give the UK an edge over the competition.