What is Biobased?

Among the many terms used to imply the sustainability of products, the term ‘biobased’ has real meaning (if accompanied by certification, for example, from the USDA, the EU or Nordic Swan Ecolabels, or the Japanese Eco Mark). Products certified as biobased contain no more than a specified percentage of carbon from fossil oil, determined using radiocarbon analysis. If a material contains no carbon-14, its carbon must come from fossil petroleum sources. The carbon-14 present when prehistoric forests or organisms last absorbed carbon dioxide from the atmosphere has long since decayed. If carbon-14 is present, the amount reveals the proportion of biobased ingredients. This approach is the basis of the ASTM D6866-22 method used for biobased content certification by USDA, the ISO 16620 Standard for Plastics published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and CSN EN 16640 published by The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical Committee. It is always better to reuse or recycle. Still, regardless of their fate, biobased materials are recycling carbon from the atmosphere. They do not add to the net carbon dioxide which is a significant cause of climate change.

Some biobased materials, once produced from agricultural sources, are indistinguishable from those obtained from the petrochemical industry and can be used as drop-in-replacements. But in many cases, the hunt for sustainable alternatives to petrochemicals has opened the way for new materials and approaches. The natural world provides an abundance of surfactants, emollients, and gelling agents, and these are starting to appear in biobased formulations for personal and home care products. Biobased additives such as nano and microfibrillated cellulose can produce more sustainable materials for consumer products and packaging. Bioplastics can be created from municipal or agricultural waste, and new materials from captured carbon dioxide can be classified as biobased (no fossil-carbon).

Novel materials must be approved by regulators in each jurisdiction where they are intended to be used. Companies providing alternatives to petrochemical-based materials must prove that their products are safe for manufacturers, consumers and the environment - and this is where Vireo Advisors comes in. We bring extensive expertise on market and regulatory requirements for biobased and related new technologies, substances and ingredients supporting the commercialization of the next generation of biobased materials worldwide.