What is Biobased and Why is it Important?

Biobased Maine is committed to the advancement of biobased technologies in Maine. But what does “biobased” mean? “Biobased” means that a product is made from renewable materials (like plants, trees, and other organic material).

So why is this important?

Is Biobased Maine committed to biobased materials because they are safer? Yes – materials that are derived from renewable sources are less likely to be toxic and harmful to public health.

Is Biobased Maine committed to biobased materials because they’re better for the environment? Yes – materials that are biobased are often biodegradable and/or compostable – this means they won’t sit around for hundreds of years in a landfill.

But what about the business reasons for switching to biobased? What about the traditional bottom line? Well, in the long-run, biobased is better for that too. In fact, all businesses will need to switch to biobased over the next few generations for the very basic reason that we are running out of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels (oil, gas, coal, etc.) are non-renewable – that means when we use them up, they can’t be regenerated quickly (unlike trees and plants, which are fast-growing in comparison). Given the rate at which the world is using fossil fuels, current reservoirs of crude oil will dry up in approximately 30-100 years (depending on how hard it is to extract them from the ground). This is why the global market for biobased materials is growing rapidly. Corporations and supply chain managers know that biobased is the future. The bioplastics market, for example, will grow at around 10% annually and be a $10 billion market by 2020. What would happen if no one considered biobased, and we continued to rely only on fossil fuels? At some point, we would be facing a massive global energy crisis. And this fact is not a well-kept secret – it’s a well understood risk that companies of all sizes are realizing. Why else would big energy companies like ExxonMobil and British Petroleum and chemical companies like DuPont be investing in biofuels and bio-based chemicals? Because they know how important biobased is and will become in the years ahead.

This is why Biobased Maine is committed to “biobased” – it’s safer, better for the environment, and smart for business.