Project overview
Territorial biorefineries for circular economy
Central Europe has a strong potential for economically utilising biomass from agriculture. It can be processed in biorefineries and transformed into a range of high value products. But this circular approach is still in its early stages and needs support. The TeBiCE project contributes by establishing sustainable value chains for biomass-based products. The partners also help with creating a market for these products by harmonising and improving regulatory frameworks across central Europe.
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2,02m €
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Project Budget
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80%
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of the Budget is funded by ERDF
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6
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Countries
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8
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Regions
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8
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Partners
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1
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Pilots
Duration
Start date
End date
Project progress
Project partnership
Project partners
Lead partner
Venetian Agency for Innovation in the Primary Sector - Veneto Agricoltura
NA
Project partner
Department of Catalysis and Chemical Reaction Engineering
Team Bio-Economy and Sustainability (BES)
NA
80336 Munich
Centre of Bioeconomy and Renewable Energies
Department of International Cooperation and Economic Development
Civil Engineering
Faculty of Engineering, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra
Roadmap
Context
Central Europe has significant potential to turn agricultural biomass and by-products into high-value products through biorefineries. However, at the start of the project this circular approach was still underdeveloped. Fragmented value chains, limited market demand for bio-based products and regulatory barriers prevented companies from fully exploiting available biomass streams.
Specific issue
Agricultural and agro-industrial residues (such as apple pomace, radicchio leaves, hemp fibres, corn cobs, pumpkin seed press cake and others) were often treated as waste rather than resources. Companies lacked practical tools to map supply chains, identify viable valorisation technologies and connect with buyers. At the same time, differing regulations across regions made it difficult to scale solutions transnationally.
Idea
The project combined research, regional knowledge and practical testing to identify how agricultural and agro-industrial by-products could be turned into new materials, products and business opportunities. Partners worked with companies and other stakeholders to test selected value chains and identify the technical, market and regulatory conditions needed to replicate them in other region
Solution
TeBiCE brought together partners from Italy, Slovenia, Germany, Poland, Austria and Slovakia to address these barriers in a coordinated way. The partnership combined regional mapping of biomass flows, the development of digital decision-support tools, pilot testing of concrete valorisation pathways and joint work on regulatory and market conditions. 4. What was developed The project delivered two main results: A transnational strategy for the by-product and waste market that provides a common framework for reducing regulatory barriers and creating better market conditions across Central Europe. A set of pilot actions and a Book of Good Examples that tested practical solutions (including drying and micronisation processes, insect farming on agri-residues, hemp fibre applications and cooperative models for pumpkin seed meal) and documented transferable lessons.
How it works
The project tested practical valorisation pathways for different agricultural and agro-industrial by-products in the partner regions. Through pilot actions, partners mapped available biomass streams, tested processing methods (such as drying, micronisation, cooperative models and alternative feed uses) and documented the technical, logistical and economic steps required to turn residues into usable materials. These experiences were then consolidated into transferable solutions and recommendations that other companies and regions can follow.
Impact
The pilots demonstrated concrete ways for companies to transform previously underused by-products into marketable materials. Cross-border cooperation helped lower entry barriers for SMEs wishing to engage in bio-based value chains and generated practical evidence that supports more coherent regulatory approaches. The knowledge, methods and good examples developed by TeBiCE remain available after the project’s completion. SMEs, public authorities, clusters and research organisations can reuse the pilot experiences, the Book of Good Examples and the report on operative measures to develop their own circular solutions. All related materials are available in the Outputs and Media sections of this website.
News
Events
Pilot actions
Outputs
Value Chain Generator - AI & Big Data platform
- Report on existing state-of-the-art value chains in target Central Europe_D.1.2.3_Final
- Methodology Of Comparison Between Supply Chains D.1.3. Final
- Report on readiness of market at transnational level_D.1.4.1_Final
Transnational strategy for by-product and waste market
TeBiCE partnership cooperating for the implementation of the project
Case Study 1 (Book of Good Examples) - Hemp Stem Material into Biocomposites
Case Study 2 (Book of Good Examples) - Circular Applications for Radicchio Leaves
Case Study 3 (Book of Good Examples) Yellow Mealworm Farming Using Agri-Food Residues
Case Study 4 (Book of Good Examples) - Agri-Food Waste Bioconversion into Feed, Fuel, or Other Products
Case Study 6 (Book of Good Examples) — Food-Grade Pumpkin Seed Meal Production
CASE STUDY 7 (Book of Good Examples) — Integrating Regional Hemp into Circular Furniture & Textiles
D.2.3.3. Report on operative measures and solutions
Project videos
Project documents
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Project images
TeBiCE
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