Bio-based products across sectors and everyday applications

Compostable coffee capsules

CBE JU-funded project: TERRIFIC
Feedstock: Sugars from agricultural side-streams

Made with more than 95% renewable resources, these compostable coffee capsules keep coffee fresh, preserve flavour and withstand the high temperatures needed to prepare an excellent espresso.

Key benefits

• Replaces fossil-based plastic with renewable materials
• Protects freshness, flavour and product quality
• Supports several end-of-life options, including composting, recycling, repulping and anaerobic digestion

Plant-based bottle

CBE JU-funded project: PEFerence
Feedstock: Plant-based renewable resources

Already available at Albert Heijn supermarkets, this lightweight bottle is made from fully recyclable, 100% bio-based PEF, marketed as releaf®. Its strong oxygen barrier helps protect product quality and extend shelf life.

PEFerence has also demonstrated PEF bottles for wine and carbonated drinks.

Key benefits

• Replaces fossil-based plastic and provides an alternative to glass
• Protects products with strong oxygen and carbon dioxide barriers
• Combines lightweight design with full recyclability

Fresh meat packaging trays

CBE JU-funded project: REDYSIGN
Feedstock: Wood-derived fibres, microfibres, nanofibres, lignin and sugars

These dry- and wet-formed trays combine renewable materials with bio-based barrier coatings for plastic-free fresh meat packaging. Integrated sensors help monitor freshness, while identification markers support more effective sorting and recycling.

Key benefits

• Replaces fossil-based plastic trays
• Supports food safety and freshness monitoring
• Improves packaging identification, sorting and recycling

Paper-based burger box

CBE JU-funded project: WOODCELL
Feedstock: Lower-quality hardwood and plywood side-streams

This paper burger box uses a plastic-free WoodCell™ crystalline cellulose coating to provide effective grease and oxygen barriers. Its mono-material design protects food while making the packaging easier to recycle.

Key benefits

• Reduces plastic use in food packaging
• Protects food from grease and oxygen
• Supports recycling through a mono-material paper design

Biodegradable mulch for seed potatoes

CBE JU-funded project: BRILIAN
Feedstock: Recovered potato starch and water from potato-cutting operations

Made from side-streams of the potato-processing industry, this mulch protects seed potato crops and biodegrades within one growing season, without leaving persistent plastic waste in the field.

Key benefits

• Creates value from potato-processing side-streams
• Replaces conventional plastic mulch
• Supports cleaner soils by biodegrading after use

Biodegradable controlled-release fertiliser

CBE JU-funded project: ELLIPSE
Feedstock: Paper and pulp industry side-streams

These nutrient-rich fertiliser granules use a bio-based, biodegradable coating to release nutrients gradually. The solution helps crops use nutrients more efficiently while avoiding the persistent microplastics associated with conventional coatings.

Key benefits

• Reduces nutrient losses
• Avoids persistent microplastic pollution
• Meets EU soil-biodegradability requirements

Hemp automotive composite

CBE JU-funded project: FIBSUN
Feedstock: Industrial hemp fibres, Cannabis sativa L.

Made from industrial hemp cultivated in Germany, this lightweight and durable non-woven composite provides a renewable material option for automotive components.

Key benefits

• Reduces reliance on fossil-based materials
• Supports lighter vehicle components
• Creates new markets for sustainably cultivated hemp

3D-printed Fiat 500 car fascia

CBE JU-funded project: BARBARA
Feedstock: Almond shells in a polyester-based composite

This single-piece Fiat 500 fascia was produced through 3D printing using a composite containing almond shells. It demonstrates how agricultural side-streams can become part of large, technically demanding automotive components.

Key benefits

• Creates a higher-value use for almond shells
• Reduces the fossil-based content of automotive composites
• Demonstrates scalable 3D printing for large car parts

3D-printed luminous tree stool

CBE JU-funded project: BARBARA
Feedstock: Almond shell fibres and a chlorophyll-derived pigment

This 3D-printed stool combines almond shell fibres with a green pigment derived from chlorophyll. Its illuminated canopy shows how renewable ingredients can bring functionality, colour and distinctive design to consumer products.

Key benefits

• Creates value from agricultural side-streams
• Reduces the use of conventional fillers and pigments
• Brings bio-based materials into interior product design

Lignin-based resin

CBE JU-funded project: VIOBOND
Feedstock: Lignin replacing fossil-based phenol in resin formulations

This thermosetting resin uses lignin to replace fossil-based phenol in conventional phenol-formaldehyde formulations. It can be applied in plywood overlays, interior laminates and abrasive paper without compromising the durability and performance manufacturers require.

Key benefits

• Reduces the use of fossil-based phenol
• Lowers the carbon footprint of industrial resins
• Maintains performance in established manufacturing applications

Wood-cement bio-concrete brick

CBE JU-funded project: FIBSUN
Feedstock: Poplar, willow and black locust wood

This construction block combines cement with wood chips from trees grown to support soil phytoremediation at a former industrial site in France. It gives the resulting biomass a new use in construction materials.

Key benefits

• Creates value from phytoremediation biomass
• Incorporates renewable material into construction products
• Connects land restoration with material production

Botanical powder extracts

CBE JU-funded project: SUSTAINEXT
Feedstock: Rosemary, artichoke, chamomile, lemon verbena and pomegranate

Rich in natural polyphenols, these botanical powder extracts can support food and nutraceutical formulations with antioxidant properties. They help protect product quality and shelf life while reducing the need for synthetic additives.

Key benefits

• Supports clean-label food and nutraceutical products
• Provides natural antioxidant functionality
• Creates higher-value uses for botanical resources and agricultural side-streams

Artichoke pesto with rosemary extract

CBE JU-funded project: SUSTAINEXT
Product: A&N Pesto
Feedstock: Artichoke and rosemary extract

This artichoke pesto uses rosemary extract in place of synthetic preservatives. The natural ingredient limits oxidation and browning while softening acidic and bitter notes for a more appealing taste and appearance.

Key benefits

• Reduces the need for synthetic preservatives
• Improves colour stability and sensory quality
• Demonstrates the functional value of botanical extracts in food

Cosmetic cream with microalgae

CBE JU-funded project: REDWINE
Feedstock: Chlorella vulgaris and red wine production side-streams

This cosmetic cream combines Chlorella vulgaris extract with ingredients recovered from red wine production. The formulation brings these renewable ingredients into a stable cosmetic product designed to meet microbiological safety and performance requirements.

Key benefits

• Creates high-value uses for food-production side-streams
• Supports more sustainable cosmetic formulations
• Demonstrates the potential of microalgae-based ingredients

Bio-based household cleaners

CBE JU-funded project: SURFs UP
Feedstock: Hardwood sugars, lignin from wood waste and regional food-processing residues

Bathroom cleaners, kitchen cleaners and dishwashing liquids use biosurfactants produced from wood and food-processing side-streams. These formulations deliver everyday cleaning performance with less reliance on fossil-based surfactants.

Key benefits

• Replaces fossil-based surfactants with renewable alternatives
• Supports effective cleaning for everyday use
• Demonstrates biosurfactant production from pilot to industrial scale