Biofuels & Bioproducts: A Sector Overview
Saskatchewan is well positioned to lead in addressing the challenges of climate change, energy security and sustainability. AWB understands the economic and market imperatives of price and performance in industry adoption of bio-based products and processes, and the role government assistance and policy will play and we believe economic growth need not come at such a high cost to our environment.
Ag West Bio Inc. acts as a uniting and motivating force in the development of the bio-based economy in Saskatchewan. We aim to lead in positioning our province as our nation's leader in bio-products development and commercialization and we're off to a good start!
Saskatchewan is already home to a vibrant and growing bio-products industry. Companies are commercially involved in or developing technologies relating to a wide range of activities including: new industrial plant-based oil products and related technologies including wood treatments and bio-diesel; Bio-energy including ethanol (from cereal grains), manure digesters and waste treatments; gasification of wood-wastes for electricity (and conversion of syngas to liquid fuels); flax fiber use in textiles and in composites, new processing technologies, bio-plastics and absorbents, plant-made industrial products and pharmaceuticals as well as bio-control products. These are just some examples of the developments from this dynamic sector developing in Saskatchewan.
AWB works with other organizations including the Saskatchewan Environmental industry Managers Association (SEiMA) and the Saskatchewan Forest Centre, Communities for Tomorrow Initiative (which deals with community and municipal "green" technologies), and many other institutions.
On this web site we will keep you informed of news from our members, upcoming events and seminars and provide useful links to programs and technology providers around the globe. Your starting point to plug into a growing network of organizations from academia, government and private industry in bio-based development begins right here.
Products / Markets
- BIOCAP Canada Foundation released a report entitled: A Canadian Biomass Inventory: Feedstocks for a Bio-based Economy. (more)
- Office of the Biomass Program (OBP) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) recently partnered to develop the Top Ten Products study, identifying twelve building block chemicals produced from sugars most suitable for convertion into a number of high-value biobased chemicals and materials. (more)
Technology
Technology is key to the success of every bio-product venture, whether it involves the simplest process or an advanced technology or complex integrated system. Saskatchewan has some of the best "Bio-Sciences" and related research and development infrastructure available and an active bio-products industry cluster involved in technology development.
Technology Sources:
- University of Saskatchewan Industry Liaison Office(ILO)
- Inventory of Canadian Agri-Food Research
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada - Saskatoon Research Centre
- Natural Resources Canada - Canadian Forest Service
- British Technology Group
- USDA – ARS – Office of Technology Transfer
- EU – Bio-Materials for Non-Food Products
Sector Information
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Destination Iowa: Getting to a Sustainable Biofuels Future(more)
- Biofuels in Europe: EuropaBio position and specific recommendations (more)
- Ethanol information for the lay person: cbc.ca video (more)
- Sustainable Development Business Case Report
Renewable Fuel — Biofuels (more). - Creating Value from Renewable Materials: A strategy for non-food crops and uses (more).
- Canada Agri-Food Research Council (CARC) and BIOCAP Canada released a report on the Opportunities and Challenges of a Bio-Based Economy for Agriculture and Food Research in Canada. (more)
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The Canadian Biomass Innovation Network (CBIN) has recently launched a new website to inform the public regarding new technologies, applications and activites of the network. (more)
- BioCap Canada and the Pollution Probe introduce a new publication on bioproducts and bioprocesses written for the lay reader - Primer on Bioproducts
- Iogen Release's Worlds First Cellulose Ethanol Fuel (more)
- Two Saskatchewan ethanol projects secure federal support. In addition, the Government of Canada is also actively working with industry to research and develop new technology that would produce ethanol from agricultural residues (including straw and corn stalks) and forestry byproducts. (more)
Other documents of interest:
- Top Value Added Chemicals from Biomass
- Consolidated Bioprocessing of Cellulosic Biomass: An Update
- Growing Energy: How Biofuels Can Help End America's Oil Dependence
- Agri-Vision Corp. – The Saskatchewan Bio-Products Industry – A Vision of Growth
- The Business of Science: Building a Better World
- Office of Industrial Technology – Vision and Roadmaps
- The Application of Biotechnology to Industrial Sustainability
- Innovation Roadmap Process for Sustainable Fuels and Chemicals from Biomass in Canada
- New & Improved Wheat Uses Audit
- Ethanol and Fuel Cells: Converging Paths of Opportunity
- Saskatchewan 'Greenprint' on Ethanol
- Effects of Climate Change on Agriculture, Forests and Rural Communities
- The Use of Spices and Medicinals as Bioactive Protectants for Grains
- Saskatchewan Industry and Resources Bio-Products and Processes profile