Visions of sustainability in bioeconomy research

“For the reviewing process regarding our main research question, the qualitative data analysis (QDA) software package, ATLAS.ti (version 7, [18]), has been used to enable a systematic and consistent approach of analyzing the publications.”

“An ecosystem services perspective may provide a useful framework to consider the use of biomass resources for various goals, provided that utilization is realized within the boundaries of sustainability (compare [103,104]).”

“…al. [67] New Biotechnology Resources II Navia et al. [68] Waste [91] Journal of Cleaner Production Processing and Technology I Vaaje-Kolstad et al. [92] Science Processing and Technology II Van Dam et al. [93] Industrial Crops and Products Resources II Vaneeckhaute et al. [94] Water, Air, & Soil…”

“…Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Environmental impact II [38] Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability Resources II Dusselier et al. [39] Energy and Environmental Science Processing and Technology II Ferdinands et al. [40] Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability Resources IV…”

“[41] Bioresource Technology Processing and Technology II Galvez et al.”

“Regarding policy documents, it has been concluded that sustainability plays a subordinate role in comparison to the goal of economic outputs and technological fixes for current problems [7–9].”

“Five databases from the fields of natural and environmental sciences, economics and social sciences were chosen: Thomson Reuters Web of Science [13], Scirus [14], ScienceDirect [15], EconLit [16] and the International Bibliography of the Social Sciences [17].”

“Although it has been argued that the two are not identical [9], we have treated the terms as interchangeable for the purposes of our review, because other authors do not follow this distinction consistently.”

“Following Fink [10] and Stechemesser et al. [11], we take a four-step approach for our literature review.”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“In trans-disciplinary settings, scientific knowledge from multiple disciplines is integrated with input from societal stakeholders for joint knowledge production [12].”

“…Journal of the Linnean Society Environmental impact II Jenkins [47] Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Processing and Technology I Jordan et al. [48] Science Resources II Junginger et al. [49] Biomass and Bioenergy Economics II Keegan et al. [50] Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Processing…”

“[66] Journal of Biotechnology Processing and Technology II Murray et al.”

“Others review the role of sustainability in policy documents regarding the bioeconomy [7–9].”

“Other papers plead for collaboration between the various disciplines and lines of research involved in the bioeconomy (e.g., agro-ecological research, green and white biotechnology, biofuel research, biology and social science) [75,80,90,97].”

“…al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources II Bergmann et al. [25] Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews Resources I Binder et al. [26] Energy and Environmental Science Processing and Technology II Boehlje et…”

“This economic benefit and concentration of incomes to a limited region may furthermore foster social benefits through local employment and a fairer distribution of incomes, and, thus, more equity [31,57,59].”

“Furthermore, 14 papers argue that sustainability should be a goal of the transition to a bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,60,61,64,70,73,75,78,86,93,100], and seven state that it should be a central element in a bioeconomy [4,6,33,49,50,58,85].”

“…Opinion in Environmental Sustainability Resources IV FitzPatrick et al. [41] Bioresource Technology Processing and Technology II Galvez et al. [42] Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment Environmental impact II Hardy [43] Trends in New Crops and New Uses Policies I Hatti-Kaul [44] Crop Science…”

“…II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources II Bergmann et al. [25] Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews Resources I Binder et al. [26] Energy and Environmental Science Processing and Technology II Boehlje et al. [27] International Food and Agribusiness Management Review Economics…”

“Furthermore, the local knowledge of stakeholders, for example farmers, can provide significant advantages and add to the knowledgebase for the bioeconomy [30,37,58,59,63,80].”

“…et al. [95] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact I Vaneeckhaute et al. [96] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact II Vanholme et al. [97] Frontiers in plant science Processing and Technology II Vitasari et al. [98] Bioresource Technology Processing and Technology II Voll et al. [99]…”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“…al. [96] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact II Vanholme et al. [97] Frontiers in plant science Processing and Technology II Vitasari et al. [98] Bioresource Technology Processing and Technology II Voll et al. [99] Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Processing and Technology III Wellisch…”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“…Water, Air, & Soil Pollution Processing and Technology II Vaneeckhaute et al. [95] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact I Vaneeckhaute et al. [96] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact II Vanholme et al. [97] Frontiers in plant science Processing and Technology II Vitasari et al. [98]…”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“Furthermore, 14 papers argue that sustainability should be a goal of the transition to a bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,60,61,64,70,73,75,78,86,93,100], and seven state that it should be a central element in a bioeconomy [4,6,33,49,50,58,85].”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“[67] New Biotechnology Resources II Navia et al.”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71,75,77,81,82,84,89,90,93], and the competition with food production is the most described example.”

“Alvarenga et al. [19] Ecological Indicators Resources II Arancibia [20] Technology in Society Social IV Barney et al. [21] Biomass and Bioenergy Resources IV Bartolini et al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources…”

“The contributions range from sustainable products, such as fertilizers, energy or commodities in general [31,35,36,43,47,88,91,95,101,102], to physical and ecological benefits, such as the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts [36,43,47,88].”

“As in the first category, some papers assume that renewable resources are generally sustainable [6,28,53,78,87,93,97].”

“As in the first category, some papers assume that renewable resources are generally sustainable [6,28,53,78,87,93,97].”

“Local or decentralized production and processing may save transportation costs and related greenhouse gas emissions and enable a local reuse of by-products [28,31,70,97].”

“…Liu et al. [61] Biotechnology Advances Processing and Technology II Lorenz et al. [62] Trends in Biotechnology Processing and Technology II Marsden [63] Sustainability Science Social IV Mathews [64] Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Policies II Mathews [65] Biofuels, Bioproducts and…”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“As in the first category, some papers assume that renewable resources are generally sustainable [6,28,53,78,87,93,97].”

“Some of the papers state that the high food prices in 2008, which are often used as the main argument in the debate, were not (primarily) caused by the competition with biofuel production [65,84], and especially in developing countries, the competition is considered harmless [52,64].”

“…I Vaaje-Kolstad et al. [92] Science Processing and Technology II Van Dam et al. [93] Industrial Crops and Products Resources II Vaneeckhaute et al. [94] Water, Air, & Soil Pollution Processing and Technology II Vaneeckhaute et al. [95] Biomass and Bioenergy Environmental impact I Vaneeckhaute et…”

“According to Wellisch et al. [6], the bioeconomy has the potential to create various positive outcomes and contribute to sustainability, but “…sustainable design must be deliberately planned and assessed.””

“…[56] Liu [60] Biotechnology Advances Processing and Technology II Liu et al. [61] Biotechnology Advances Processing and Technology II Lorenz et al. [62] Trends in Biotechnology Processing and Technology II Marsden [63] Sustainability Science Social IV Mathews [64] Biofuels, Bioproducts and…”

“Other papers plead for collaboration between the various disciplines and lines of research involved in the bioeconomy (e.g., agro-ecological research, green and white biotechnology, biofuel research, biology and social science) [75,80,90,97].”

“Some of the papers state that the high food prices in 2008, which are often used as the main argument in the debate, were not (primarily) caused by the competition with biofuel production [65,84], and especially in developing countries, the competition is considered harmless [52,64].”

“…Technology in Society Social IV Barney et al. [21] Biomass and Bioenergy Resources IV Bartolini et al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources II Bergmann et al. [25] Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews…”

“…impact II Hardy [43] Trends in New Crops and New Uses Policies I Hatti-Kaul [44] Crop Science Processing and Technology II Hoefnagels et al. [45] Energy Policy Economics II Huang [46] Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society Environmental impact II Jenkins [47] Biofuels, Bioproducts and…”

“…Processing and Technology I Brunori [32] EuroChoices Policies III Centi et al. [33] Catalysis Today Processing and Technology II Charlton et al. [34] Chemical Engineering Research and Design Processing and Technology II Chen [35] Chinese Journal of Biotechnology Processing and Technology I…”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“…Müller et al. [66] Journal of Biotechnology Processing and Technology II Murray et al. [67] New Biotechnology Resources II Navia et al. [68] Waste [91] Journal of Cleaner Production Processing and Technology I Vaaje-Kolstad et al. [92] Science Processing and Technology II Van Dam et al. [93]…”

“…Indicators Resources II Arancibia [20] Technology in Society Social IV Barney et al. [21] Biomass and Bioenergy Resources IV Bartolini et al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources II Bergmann et al. [25]…”

“Alvarenga et al. [19] Ecological Indicators Resources II Arancibia [20] Technology in Society Social IV Barney et al. [21] Biomass and Bioenergy Resources IV Bartolini et al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources…”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“In that year, a special issue regarding the invasion risks of new crops in the bioeconomy was published in the journal “Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability”, from which six papers were reviewed here [38,40,75,81–83].”

“As in the first category, some papers assume that renewable resources are generally sustainable [6,28,53,78,87,93,97].”

“Alvarenga et al. [19] Ecological Indicators Resources II Arancibia [20] Technology in Society Social IV Barney et al. [21] Biomass and Bioenergy Resources IV Bartolini et al. [22] Energy Policy Policies IV Becker et al. [23] Energy Policy Resources II Benning et al. [24] The Plant Journal Resources II Bergmann et al.…”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“An ecosystem services perspective may provide a useful framework to consider the use of biomass resources for various goals, provided that utilization is realized within the boundaries of sustainability (compare [103,104]).”

“…Galvez et al. [42] Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment Environmental impact II Hardy [43] Trends in New Crops and New Uses Policies I Hatti-Kaul [44] Crop Science Processing and Technology II Hoefnagels et al. [45] Energy Policy Economics II Huang [46] Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society…”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“[5] Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining Environmental impact II Dubois [38] Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability Resources II Dusselier et al.”

“Some argue that biomass for fuel or material applications should be derived from non-food crops, therefore avoiding direct competition for the same resource [51,65,79].”

“The contributions range from sustainable products, such as fertilizers, energy or commodities in general [31,35,36,43,47,88,91,95,101,102], to physical and ecological benefits, such as the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and other negative environmental impacts [36,43,47,88].”

“Others point out that not all sustainability issues regarding the bioeconomy, such as biosecurity risks, are recognized sufficiently at the policy level, and at the same time, the proclaimed benefits for sustainability are yet unclear [81,83].”

“Furthermore, the local knowledge of stakeholders, for example farmers, can provide significant advantages and add to the knowledgebase for the bioeconomy [30,37,58,59,63,80].”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“Some of the papers state that the high food prices in 2008, which are often used as the main argument in the debate, were not (primarily) caused by the competition with biofuel production [65,84], and especially in developing countries, the competition is considered harmless [52,64].”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“Ponte [72] warns that in a bioeconomy, sustainability labelling may become more important than actually achieving sustainability, as is currently the case with fisheries.”

“Some speak of the bioeconomy as if it was self-evidently sustainable, for example referring to the use of renewable resources, which are the basis of the bioeconomy, as sustainable [31,68,88,101,102].”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71 ,75 ,77 ,81 ,82 ,84”

“…in Environmental Sustainability Resources II Dusselier et al. [39] Energy and Environmental Science Processing and Technology II Ferdinands et al. [40] Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability Resources IV FitzPatrick et al. [41] Bioresource Technology Processing and Technology II Galvez…”

“Some papers deal with the effects of the bioeconomy on sustainability, but mostly focus on specific elements of the bioeconomy, such as biorefineries [4–6].”

“Some speak of the bioeconomy as if it was self-evidently sustainable, for example referring to the use of renewable resources, which are the basis of the bioeconomy, as sustainable [31,68,88,101,102].”

“Local or decentralized production and processing may save transportation costs and related greenhouse gas emissions and enable a local reuse of by-products [28,31,70,97].”

“Both Chen [35] and Hardy [43] indicate that the bioeconomy generally contributes to sustainability.”

“Greenhouse gas emissions may result from land use changes, as described above, but also from energy use in the processing of biomass [56,57,89].”

“…point it out as one of the reasons to engage in the bioeconomy [6,27,70,71,77,81,97]; eleven argue that it should be a central element [4,6,32,33,49,50,57,71,80,82,85], and 22 state that it should be the goal of the bioeconomy [4,6,19,46,56,58,60,61,64,69–71, 73, 75, 78, 80 , 86 , 88 , 93 , 99–”

“Generally, the land availability and land use competition is described by many as a problem or even the limiting factor for the development of a bioeconomy [5,19,22,24,29,33,34,44,51,52,56,57,63–65,71,75,77,81,82,84,89,90,93], and the competition with food production is the most described example.”

“A strong optimism has been observed regarding the benefits of the bioeconomy (McCormick and Kautto, 2013); some bioeconomy strategies and scientific publications consider the bioeconomy to be inherently sustainable (Hetemäki et al., 2017; Pfau et al., 2014).”

“Similarly, the bioeconomy enables the transition from fossil-based to biomass-based industrial inputs and emphasizes the sustainable use of renewable resources for economic, environmental, and social benefits (Pfau et al., 2014; D’Amato et al., 2018; Gawel et al., 2019).”

“However, recent studies emphasize the dependence of a sustainable bioeconomy on technical, economic, and social prerequisites that the bioeconomy itself cannot create [2].”

“[44] argue that it is important that as the bioeconomy develops, the relationship with sustainability is taken into consideration.”

“Different understandings of the relationship between the bioeconomy and sustainability were identified in the scientific literature [53]:”

“A further option for avoiding land use conflicts is the use of residual and waste materials such as the non-edible parts of food crops, timber and forest residues, agricultural byproducts, and biogenic municipal or industrial waste [20,53].”

“Reference [21]), consumer acceptance of bio-based products struggles with several challenges (for an overview see Reference [90]), but after all, sustainability is the key for purchasing decisions in favour of the bioeconomy.”

“Focusing mostly on Europe, for instance, Priefer et al. (2017), Pfau et al. (2014), Ollikainen (2014) and McCormick and Kautto (2013) identify the existing gaps and needs for incorporating new insights into existing understanding.”

“Such fundamental change processes tend to be highly contested [22–26], involve a great number of actors across different domains and will probably take decades to reach a new dynamically stable equilibrium.”

“Also, sustainability issues for each biomass type are important and their utilization should be sustainable and consistent with each other (Pfau et al. (2014) demonstrate that the sustainability of bioeconomy is understood in different ways in the literature).”

“The review of academic literature referred to the wheat to bread chain is developed according to a systematic approach (Fink, 2014; Pfau et al., 2014).”

“The sustainability of the EU’s expanding bioeconomy has also been questioned (Pfau et al 2014, O’Brien et al 2015, O’Brien et al 2017, RamcilovicSuominen and Pülzl 2018).”

“While there is now a growing literature addressing the bioeconomy concept (e.g., Bugge et al., 2016; P€at€ari et al., 2016; Pfau et al., 2014; Staffas et al., 2013; Van Lancker et al., 2016), few studies have addressed the bioeconomy from a political science perspective (e.g., Goven and Pavone,…”

“Around the transition to a bioeconomy there are a lot of expectations, but also some concerns (see Pfau et al., 2014, for a recent overview).”

“[8] Pfau SF, Hagens JE, Dankbaar B, Smits AJM.”

“Otherwise, stakeholders with specific interests may dominate these developments and not necessarily contribute to the public good [6].”

“Some circular bioeconomy strategies and research consider the circular bioeconomy to be inherently sustainable [10].”

“Supporting a regional and decentralized bio-based economy could also promote the use of local feedstock and integration of traditional and local knowledge [48,64].”

“Specifically, positive sustainable development opportunities are variously attributed to enhancing: global [167], national, regional [176,181,186], local and SME scales of the bioeconomy [168,187], as well as specific bioeconomic sectors [188,189].”

“However, there has been inadequate scientific research into the concepts [11–14] and queries raised about their efficacy in reducing impacts on biodiversity [15,16].”

“Others wonder whether this presentation of the BBE can actually deliver on its promises with regard to sustainability, particularly in light of the vast amounts of biomass that will need to be produced (Koppejan and Asveld 2011; Cf. Pfau et al. 2014, 1233).”

“[32] highlight, policy research on the bio-economy and sustainability has increasingly emphasized the problems associated with this vision of the bio-economy as inherently sustainable.”

“…Braun, 2017), and a “policy concept” (Birner, 2018), while “the definitions have shown to evolve in a relatively short period of time” (McCormick and Kautto, 2013), with different definitions being classified in terms of different “visions” (discussed below) (Bugge et al., 2016; Pfau et al., 2014).”

“Several studies analyze how the bioeconomy concept relates to notions of sustainability (Dubois and Gomez San Juan 2016; Kr€oger and Raitio 2017; Pfau et al. 2014; Ramcilovic-Suominen and P€ulzl 2018; Vivien et al. 2019).”

“even—if left unattended—quite likely [21].”

“This distinction in terms of visions has been maintained by other researchers [70,72,73] and the NASEM Safeguarding report adopted this as well.”

“Pfau et al. (2014) noted that scholars hold diverse perspectives regarding the contribution of the bioeconomy to sustainability, with the sustainable sourcing of biomass being a crucial issue.”

“The fact that bioeconomy is considered sustainable is controversial amidst the scientific community, as a bioeconomic transition can also have negative impacts on sustainability [98].”

“, material, chemicals, energy) should be derived from renewable biological resources, with research and innovation enabling the transformational process (Kleinschmit et al. 2014; Pfau et al. 2014; Bugge et al. 2016).”

“However, the research field of forest-based bioeconomy is yet highly fragmented especially from sustainability and social science perspective (see e.g. Pfau et al. 2014).”

“Besides policy document analysis [5,11,12], literature reviews [2,13], stakeholder interviews, and surveys [4,14] have been recurrent data sources.”

“on renewability or on the environmental dimension (Pfau et al., 2014).”

“Concerns concern, inter alia, that “nonfood” biomass production competes with food production for land and may be a source of large carbon dioxide emissions due to land-use change [50,55].”

“For a detailed analysis of different viewpoints on the relationship between the bioeconomy and sustainability, see Pfau et al. (2014).”

“Pfau et al. (2014) reviewed 87 journal articles from different academic disciplines dealing with the link between the bio-economy and sustainability.”

“Indeed, the bioeconomy cannot be considered sustainable per se, but needs to set sustainability as a central target to contribute to sustainable development [37].”

“Causality is relevant in case of potential spatial spillover, which requires one to simultaneously account for synergies and trade-offs among the dimensions of sustainability (Pfau et al., 2014).”

“Several scholars and experts have pointed out the current limits of the bioeconomy as a concept for forwarding environmental and social sustainability (Pfau et al. 2014) (Table 1).”