Biobased products can deliver numerous economic and environmental benefits, including reducing the use of fossil fuels and creating a more circular bioeconomy. Stakeholders around the world, including governments and industry are working to accelerate the production and use of renewable materials and products by addressing concerns, creating supportive policy, and employing public-private partnerships. Join an engaging discussion on efforts underway to support the adoption of biobased products and where additional effort is needed to grow this exciting industry globally.

• Geoffrey Inch, Circular Economy & Sustainability Director, Braskem
• Gerard Ostheimer, Manager, Clean Energy Ministerial Biofuture Campaign
• Iryna Biliaieva, Strategic Business Development Director, ADM BioSolutions

Just as the range of available plant-based products continues to expand, so does the use of more unique feedstocks. This session will feature speakers representing a variety of diverse feedstocks being used to make plant-based products, including hemp, seaweed, and grasses. Panelists will share their perspectives on the promise of those feedstocks, where and how they may be used, and what can be done to further support broader adoption and understanding of those respective feedstocks.

• Moderator - Jamaica Gayle, Senior Manager of Sustainability, Plant Based Products Council
• Erica Stark, Executive Director, National Hemp Association
• Julia Marsh, Co-founder & CEO, Sway
• Wendy Owens, Founder & CEO, Hexas Biomass

Agriculture is essential to America’s leadership in plant-based chemicals and the bioeconomy. The efficiency and productivity of the nation’s corn farmers drives the economic and sustainability engines we have committed to at the national and global level. Without widespread transformation of carbon dioxide into practical and useful forms, which can be done using solar energy, it will be difficult to achieve carbon negative products as well as energy, chemical, and material independence for the U.S. Corn and the other feedstocks that make up those practical and useful forms are true miracle crops – what else captures carbon dioxide using the sun and can be stored for years until it is needed for fuel, chemical, or material production? Let’s see how agriculture can continue to be America’s super tool.

• Moderator - Alex Buck, Ph.D., Director of Industrial Innovation, Iowa Corn Promotion Board
• Aimee Bissel, Farmer
• Bob Bowman, Farmer

The scale-up of the bioeconomy depends on a strategic and comprehensive web of resources including infrastructure, capacity, and the workforce. This panel showcases the not-for-profit BioP2P Network that is focused on supporting scale-up of the bioeconomy through a connected community. Moderated by Matt Gardner, Board President, California Biomanufacturing Center, panelists will highlight bottlenecks on each of these key issues.

• Moderator – Matt Gardner, Board President, California Biomanufacturing Center
• Dr. Jim DeKloe, Professor of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Solano College
• Dr. Arvin Cesar Lagda, Director of Cell and Cell Products Fermentation Facility, Waksman Institute of Microbiology, Rutgers University
• Steve Dubin, Principal, SDA Ventures LLC

Sponsored by BioP2P Network

The market for compostable packaging is poised to grow 17% annually from 2020 to 2027, yet significant consumer confusion persists around what is compostable and what to do with compostable packaging at the end of its use. Effective, consistent, and truthful labeling remains an ongoing challenge for consumers, policymakers, and composters alike. Closed Loop Partners and Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) will present the key results from their joint consumer labeling study which measured the effectiveness of various on-item labeling techniques for compostable packaging. Following the presentation, the lead researchers will be joined by additional experts in the composting space to discuss how the findings can inform upstream design and labeling decisions that can support the whole organics value chain.

• Moderator – Paula Luu, Senior Project Director, Closed Loop Partners
• Margaret Eldridge, Certification Director, Biodegradable Products Institute
• Kristie Blumer, Senior Director of Composting, Compost Crew