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Visions of Sustainability in Bioeconomy Research
Open accessAbstract
The rise of the bioeconomy is usually associated with increased sustainability. However, various controversies suggest doubts about this assumed relationship. The objective of this paper is to identify different visions and the current understanding of the relationship between the bioeconomy and sustainability in the scientific literature by means of a systematic review. After a search in several databases, 87 scientific journal articles were selected for review. Results show that visions about the relationship between bioeconomy and sustainability differ substantially. Four different visions were identified, including: (1) the assumption that sustainability is an inherent characteristic of the bioeconomy; (2) the expectation of benefits under certain conditions; (3) tentative criticism under consideration of potential pitfalls; and (4) the assumption of a negative impact of the bioeconomy on sustainability. There is considerable attention for sustainability in the scientific bioeconomy debate, and the results show that the bioeconomy cannot be considered as self-evidently sustainable. In further research and policy development, good consideration should therefore be given to the question of how the bioeconomy could contribute to a more sustainable future. Furthermore, it is stressed that the bioeconomy should be approached in a more interdisciplinary or trans-disciplinary way. The consideration of sustainability may serve as a basis for such an approach.
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“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).”
From Circular Bioeconomy Concepts—A Perspective (2021) · cites this paper as Pfau et al., 2014
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“Some definitions suggest that the bioeconomy is not intrinsically sustainable just because it is based on renewable resources (Pfau et al., 2014; Gawel et al., 2019).”
From Circular Bioeconomy Concepts—A Perspective (2021) · cites this paper as Pfau et al., 2014
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Cites
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Biomass as a Cornerstone of a Circular Economy: Resources, Energy, and Environment
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Pietzsch, J. (2020) · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-60390-1 · Cited by 3
Resilience Challenges in Bioeconomy Policies: A Global Comparative Analysis
Goritz, N., Proestou, M., & Feindt, P. H. (2026) · Environmental Management · doi:10.1007/s00267-026-02432-1 · Cited by 2
“…the resilience of BBPS to the bioeconomy, bioeconomy policies have been mostly assessed as not suf fi ciently incorporating sustainability concerns, foregrounding the opportunities of bioec-onomy transformations while omitting the challenges (Pfau et al. 2014; Vivien et al. 2019; Boyer et al. 2022).”
Exploring the Global Trend of the Sustainable Bioeconomy: An Analysis of Scientific Literature
Kumari, R., & Parashar, P. (2026) · Circular Economy and Sustainability · doi:10.1007/s43615-026-00803-8 · Cited by 2
“This specific period was chosen because there has been a notable increase in research in this field since 2010 [ 10].”
Kalimeris, P., Maroulis, G., Koronaios, P., & Rovolis, A. (2025) · Cleaner and Circular Bioeconomy · doi:10.1016/j.clcb.2025.100195 · Cited by 2
Olivo, M. L. O., Luzon, E., & Ritter, K. (2025) · Agrosystems, Geosciences & Environment · doi:10.1002/agg2.70085 · Cited by 2
Old Wine in New Bottles: The Technological Promise of Biorefinery In Historical Perspective
Krasnodębski, M. (2024) · Technology and Culture · doi:10.1353/tech.2024.a940469 · Cited by 2
Ferracini, T. V., Santos, R. P. D. O., Rossi, P. F., & Frollini, E. (2024) · Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery · doi:10.1007/s13399-024-06176-y · Cited by 2
“Notably, CA is a valuable addition to the circular bioeconomy [14–16].”
The Future of Innovative Agriculture: Bioeconomy and Sustainable Agriculture
Bulut, M., & Filik, G. (2024) · Turkish Journal of Agriculture: Food Science and Technology · doi:10.24925/turjaf.v12i6.1110-1119.6793 · Cited by 2
“New products are being used increasingly frequently, particularly in the manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and energy production industries (Pfau et al., 2014).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialModels for analysing the dependencies between indicators for bioeconomy in the European Union
Dima, A., Tantau, A., & Maassen, M. A. (2022) · Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja · doi:10.1080/1331677x.2021.1997623 · Cited by 2
Jansen, S., Foster, W., Anríquez, G., & Ortega, J. (2021) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su13020450 · Cited by 5
“A review of the scientific literature concerned with the sustainability of the bioeconomy concludes that, “the bioeconomy cannot be considered self-evidently sustainable” [10] (p.”
BackgroundFostering ‘Bioeconomy Strategy’ through synergies: managerial implications from Interreg Europe
Mouzakitis, Y., & Tsoulfas, G. (2019) · doi:10.33422/2nd.icmef.2019.11.719 · Cited by 2
“Pfau et al. (2014) argue that the concept of bioeconomy appears with several interpretations and visions.”
BackgroundBackground to Emerging Bio-Economies
Birch, K. (2018) · Neoliberal Bio-Economies? · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-91424-4_3 · Cited by 2
Marche, B., Camargo, M., & Bachmann, C. (2024) · Technologie et innovation · doi:10.21494/iste.op.2024.1061 · Cited by 2
“En effet, l’utilisation de ressources renouvelables n’est pas une condition suffisante pour justifier de la durabilité de la bioéconomie [PFA 14, GAW 19] .”
BackgroundAdvancing a Framework for Entrepreneurship Development in a Bioeconomy
Oguntuase, O. (2021) · doi:10.4018/978-1-7998-4826-4.ch014 · Cited by 2
Modern society and zero waste tools
Rajadesingu, S., Shastri, D. V., Dowlath, M. J. H., Karuppannan, S. K., & Arunachalam, K. D. (2020) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-822183-9.00008-8 · Cited by 2
Einführung in das System Bioökonomie
Thrän, D. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-662-60730-5_1 · Cited by 3
Energy, nutrient, and water resource recovery from agriculture and aquaculture wastes
Ray, L., & Adhya, T. (2020) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-444-64321-6.00018-5 · Cited by 2
Riemann, L., Spohn, N., Schmitt, S., Ayuk, M. E., Cordova-Pineda, D. A., Böcher, M., & Kleinschmit, D. (2026) · Forest Policy and Economics · doi:10.1016/j.forpol.2026.103857 · Cited by 1
Circular bioeconomy at a crossroads: Lessons from the valorization of pomegranate waste in France
Girard, G. (2026) · Environmental Science & Policy · doi:10.1016/j.envsci.2026.104476 · Cited by 1
Sarmiento, J., & Castelao-Caruana, M. E. (2025) · Journal of the Knowledge Economy · doi:10.1007/s13132-024-02371-4 · Cited by 1
“Others have focused on the convergence between the terms bio-economy, green economy, and circular economy, emphasising the role of sustainability (D’Amato et al., 2017; Pfau et al., 2014) and the relationship between bio-economy and biotechnology (Befort, 2020).”
Rodríguez-Soto, J. A. (2025) · Journal of Sustainable Development · doi:10.5539/jsd.v18n1p77 · Cited by 1
“By analyzing the literature, three approaches to bioeconomy can be identified: a line of biotechnology, another of bio-resources and, finally, one of bio-ecology (Bugge et al., 2016; Dietz et al., 2018; Pfau et al., 2014; Segura et al., 2023).”
Hilgert, P., Stark, S., von Cossel, M., Lewandowski, I., Schurr, U., & Venghaus, S. (2024) · EFB Bioeconomy Journal · doi:10.1016/j.bioeco.2024.100074 · Cited by 1
BIOECONOMIA BIOTECNOLÓGICA NA AMAZÔNIA OCIDENTAL
Picanço, C. A. S., & Sobrinho, M. V. (2024) · P2P E INOVAÇÃO · doi:10.21728/p2p.2024v10n2e-6886 · Cited by 1
Liobikienė, G., Krikštolaitis, R., & Miceikienė, A. (2021) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-432152/v1 · Cited by 1
“Despite the emphasis of sustainable growth, the environmental aspects of a sustainable supply of bioresource was insu ciently addressed there (European Bioeconomy Panel, 2014; Pfau et al., 2014).”
BackgroundDinica, V. (2021) · Political science · doi:10.1080/00323187.2021.2019592 · Cited by 1
“…e.g. to help de-contaminate the environment and to establish a ‘bio-ecology’ that could help recover degraded ecosystems and populations of species at risk, including through extensive (commercial) reforestation (Bugge, Hansen, and Klitkou 2016; EC 2018; Pfau et al. 2014; Vivien et al. 2019).”
BackgroundDifference between Bibliometric and Grey Data. Transdisciplinary Bioeconomy Research
Muižniece, I., Kubule, A., Zihare, L., & Blumberga, D. (2020) · Environmental and Climate Technologies · doi:10.2478/rtuect-2020-0058 · Cited by 1
“In addition, the fundamental principles of sustainability [8], [14] – environmental, economic and social [15], [16] – must also be incorporated in order to achieve sustainable bioeconomy development.”
BackgroundWissen für den Wandel – Wissenstheoretische Grundlagen einer nachhaltigen Bioökonomiepolitik
Urmetzer, S., Schlaile, M. P., Bogner, K., Mueller, M., & Pyka, A. (2020) · Technikzukünfte, Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft · doi:10.1007/978-3-658-29433-5_4 · Cited by 115
“Nimmt man die Komplexität normativen Wissens wirklich ernst, so mag es sogar ganz und gar unmöglich sein, global geltende Regeln, Normen und Werte auszuhandeln und ein universelles Paradigma für eine NWB-Transformation zu definieren (vgl. dazu bspw. Pfau et al. 2014).”
BackgroundInfluentialBirch, K. (2018) · Neoliberal Bio-Economies? · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-91424-4_4 · Cited by 1
Metadata
- Authors
- Pfau, S., Hagens, J., Dankbaar, B., & Smits, A.
- Affiliations
- Radboud University Nijmegen (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Pfau, Swinda
- ORCID
- Dankbaar, Ben
- Venue
- Sustainability
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2014-03-06
- Volume
- 6
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 1222-1249
- ISSN
- 2071-1050 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2112516455
- Cited by
- 398
- References
- 103
- Citations by year
- 2026: 19 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 33 · 2023: 39 · 2022: 57 · 2021: 48 · 2020: 48 · 2019: 40 · 2018: 33 · 2017: 25 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 4
- FWCI
- 66.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Sustainability (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Interreg
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › General Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Bioeconomy and Sustainability Development
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Sustainable Development and Environmental Management
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Biofuel production and bioconversion
- Keywords
- bioeconomy, sustainability vision, bioeconomy policy, interdisciplinary research, transdisciplinarity
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