Infographic Series
Enable Bio
To enable Ireland’s circular bioeconomy, regulation must keep pace with scientific and technical innovation. The Enable BIO project aims to create a roadmap for regulatory innovation to help unlock the potential of Ireland’s agri-food ‘wastes. Along the way, we’ll provide:
- A snapshot of Ireland’s agri-food ‘waste’ feedstocks
- Case studies showcasing bio-based innovations using agri-food ‘waste’
- A map of stakeholders with roles in agri-food ‘waste’ regulation
- Overview of key barriers to the valorisation of agri–food waste
- A roadmap to support the use of agri-food ‘wastes’ in Ireland’s circular bioeconomy
Check out the EnableBIO infographic to see how we’re working towards regulatory innovation to unlock the potential of Ireland’s agri-food ‘wastes’.
JusTACE
The @EPA Research-funded @JusTACE-project (2025-2029) will engage Irish agri-food stakeholders to develop holistic solutions to drive support for, and scale up #justtransition within the Irish #agrifood sector and broader circular #bioeconomy. In this way, the project seeks to have impact for local communities towards a sustainable future. This will be achieved through the development of an innovative socio-economic impact indicator framework which will help examine the existing financial incentives that support just transition, and identify effective supports. The project will deliver an aligned set of stakeholder-informed policy recommendations, and circular business and collaborative consumption models.
We are eager to engage with other projects in this space and learn from the experiences of previous projects. Are you aware of any synergistic projects we could connect with? Please let us know in the comments!
BBioNets
How can BBioNets help you achieve a more circular Bioeconomy on your 🐮 farm or 🪵 forest?
Check out how we are selecting 💡 innovations for you to bring to your land in this infographic! 👇👇👇👇👇
To explore the expanding list of innovations compiled by BBioNets, get hands-on with the BBT Assessment Tool and learn more about the project 👉 https://bbionets.eu/
CBEC
Ireland’s Circular Bioeconomy Education Centre (CBEC) will provide a coordinated approach to integrate the bioeconomy into all levels of the Irish education system
If you are involved in education, biomass primary production or biobased industry and would like to know more about education in the circular bioeconomy follow us on LinkedIn
https://circbio.ie/cbec-irelands-circular-bioeconomy-education-centre
ROBIN Project Social Media Post
🌿 How can regional policies better reflect the potential of community-driven bioeconomy?
As part of Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2025, MTU’s CircBio Group is sharing outcomes from the recently completed EU Horizon ROBIN Project, which supported rural regions in developing circular bioeconomy strategies through tailored governance models and policy tools.
The project focused on:
- Strengthening regional governance for bioeconomy development
- Offering practical tools for policy co-creation, monitoring, and environmental planning
- Highlighting inspiring real-world examples — including community-led initiatives — that show how local actors can shape more inclusive and grounded policies
📍Irish example featured: A Food Forest project ex Edible Landscape project illustrates how grassroots efforts can align with regional bioeconomy goals, even if not directly involved in the formal policy process.
🔍 Interested in the ROBIN Toolbox & real-world practices?
Visit our officially Robin website page: https://robin-project.eu
🧩 ROBIN (2022–2025) was funded by Horizon Europe and delivered with partners including the Southern Regional Assembly.
MARINNONET
We are proud to support Ireland’s marine sector in the European Interreg MARINNONET innovation network. MARINNONET aims to unleash the power of Transnational Collaboration for Sustainable Marine Biotech Innovation in the Atlantic Area! The network is a joint effort involving key players dedicated to Marine Biotechnology Research, Development, and Innovation in Ireland’s Northern & Western and Southern regions, the Bretagne region of France, the Canarias, Galicia, and País Vasco regions of Spain, and the Norte and Centro regions of Portugal. The goal is to work together and make the most of their different skills and abilities to benefit the blue innovation ecosystems in the Atlantic Area. This way, they can stay competitive in the European and global Blue Bioeconomy and use marine resources sustainably, helping to deal with climate change.
The new cooperation network partners will help boost innovation in the Blue Biotech sector in the Atlantic Area by setting up conditions that facilitate stakeholders to develop new ideas collaboratively. This network will also focus on R&D&I activities that are driven by what the market needs, involving both the innovation developers and implementers. The network will showcase different examples of how Blue Biotech can bring about new and impactful innovations through pilot projects and other activities.
FEDERI
Federating Irish Research Infrastructure to Accelerate Biotechnology Development of Sustainable Bioprocesses (FEDERI)
Ireland has an incredible opportunity to strengthen its research infrastructure to become a global leader in food and industrial biotechnology.
Our vision is to federate Irish research facilities, creating stronger connections between institutions and aligning with IBISBA-ERIC, the European research infrastructure for biotechnology. This will accelerate innovation and sustainable development across the sector.
Key steps we are driving forward:
1️⃣ Build the Irish node for IBISBA-ERIC to integrate Ireland into Europe’s biotech network.
2️⃣ Create national synergies to attract investment and foster innovation in food and industrial biotechnology.
3️⃣ Enable open access to research infrastructures to tackle agricultural, environmental, and climate challenges.
4️⃣ Develop sustainable bioprocesses, including precision fermentation for high-value bio-based products.
Through cataloguing Ireland’s biotech infrastructure, identifying feedstocks and bio-based opportunities, and addressing sector-wide challenges, we are laying the foundation for a thriving, connected bioeconomy.
This effort is powered by the CircBio Economy Research Group (MTU) and SUSFEM (UCC), working together to make Ireland a leading hub for biotech innovation.
InformBio
🧑🎓 Learn more about InformBio and our tools!
INFORMBIO project supports the development of a bioeconomy observatory for a sustainable and circular Irish bioeconomy.
Working since 2022, this project intends to provide a clear roadmap towards a sustainable bioeconomy for Ireland, enabling stakeholders to track the development and progress of the national bioeconomy against key bioeconomy indicators.
👇👇👇👇👇👇👇
Rural Biorefarmeries
Rural BioReFarmeries (RBRF) is a Horizon Europe project aiming to demonstrate how small-scale green biorefineries can shape the future of rural Europe, by transforming grasslands and green residues into high value bio-based products and materials.
This 4-year initiative, funded by the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking, brings together the expertise of 19 partner institutions from 8 EU countries, including scientists, researchers, primary producers and industry. The consortium is led by Munster Technological University and coordinated by James Gaffey, Co-Director of MTU’s Circular Bioeconomy Research Group (CIRCBIO).
To achieve its mission, RBRF will work with three demonstration sites based in Ireland, Denmark and The Netherlands. Beyond the environmental benefits, the proposed biorefinery models will also empower farmers and rural communities across Europe, giving them a prominent role in building a circular bioeconomy.
https://ruralbiorefarmeries.eu
Celebrating Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2025!
Supporting the transition to a regenerative bioeconomy by enabling companies, communities and policymakers to collaborate, innovate and grow sustainably is at the heart of the Circular Bioeconomy Cluster.
Snapshot of 2025
- 80 members across start-ups, SMEs and multinationals
- 13 project accelerators & €250,000 granted so far
- 15 networking events with 300+ individuals engaged
- Active European projects and new proposals underway
The Circular Bioeconomy Cluster works with leaders in industry, research, academia and government agencies to shape Ireland’s future from the ground up.
The Circular Bioeconomy Cluster is funded by the Enterprise Ireland Regional Technology Cluster Fund.
https://cbcsw.ie/
MainstreamBio Project Social Media Post
💡 How can youth, women, and consumers inspire and drive the future of the bioeconomy?
As part of Bioeconomy Ireland Week, MTU and CircBIO group are showcasing our work from the MainstreamBIO project, which promotes small-scale bio-based solutions across 7 rural regions in Europe: 🇳🇱 Netherlands, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇩🇰 Denmark, 🇸🇪 Sweden, 🇧🇬 Bulgaria, 🇪🇸 Spain, and 🇮🇪 Ireland. Through 14 in-person events and 10 webinars, we engaged over 1,200 participants, highlighting the critical role of women, youth, and consumers in shaping sustainable, rural bioeconomy pathways — from entrepreneurship to advocacy.
🎥 Watch our inspiring webinars on MainstreamBIO Toolkit Website or MainstreamBIO official YouTube channel: https://mainstreambio-digital-toolkit.eu/webinars
🧰 The poster features the MainstreamBIO Toolkit, a practical digital platform supporting local actors with tools, strategies, and real-life case studies to develop bio-based initiatives rooted in local potential.
💡 With inspiring examples — like Dr. Carmen Hijosa, founder of Ananas Anam (Pinatex), who start-up her sustainable fashion journey just here in rural Ireland – the project amplifies the powerful contributions these groups are playing in making a greener future.
Explore the Toolkit via the QR code on the poster or visit the website to see how rural bioeconomy is being shaped across Europe: https://mainstreambio-project.eu/
🧩 MainstreamBIO (2022–2025) was funded by Horizon Europe and delivered with partners from 7 EU countries including Ireland.
