Economic Impact of the Plant-based Products Industry
Investing in plant-based products creates good, well-paying American jobs, meets consumer demand for more product choice, and offers American farmers another market to sell feedstocks grown on U.S. soil.
U.S. Economic Impact
JOBS
3.94 million
AVERAGE ANNUAL WAGE
$102K
OUTPUT
$489 billion
According to data available from USDA’s BioPreferred® Program, the plant-based products industry contributes $489 billion in U.S. economic activity and provides nearly 4 million jobs. For each biobased products industry job, 1.4 more jobs are supported in other sectors of the U.S. economy.
High-Quality, High-Wage Jobs
The plant-based products industry creates quality STEM jobs for engineers and chemists to support this innovative sector. Data from the TECONOMY / BIO 2024 report shows workers in the agricultural feedstock and industrial biosciences earned an average of nearly $102,000 per year. That’s significantly greater —about $30,000 —than the U.S. average private sector wage.
Revitalizing Rural America
The plant-based products industry brings jobs to small communities and contributes to economic quality-of-life improvements. Biorefineries and other industry facilities are frequently located near agricultural feedstocks in rural America, creating a need for everything from tradespersons to chemists and engineers. And, the growing ag bioeconomy offers new and expanding market options for farmers.
In Kansas, PBPC member Green Dot Bioplastics is proving how an emphasis on bioeconomic development can benefit communities and place America on the leading edge of plant-based product innovation and manufacturing.
We can bring manufacturing back to rural America — creating jobs in research and development, chemistry, and engineering for areas that have suffered economically. Not only that, the industry is based on our nation’s existing competitive strength in sustainable agriculture — supporting farmers — while helping solve some of our greatest environmental challenges in plastic pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
Mark Remmert, CEO of Green Dot Bioplastics, a PBPC member company
Circular Bioeconomy in Action
The circular bioeconomy is powerful because it utilizes renewable agriculture feedstocks while creating longer lasting products and less waste. Starting with more resilient resources for energy, chemicals, and other materials, circular, biobased products are designed to be kept in use longer whether they are reused, repurposed, or recycled, and that reduces waste.
PBPC member Novamont‘s economic revitalization model is a prime example of circularity in action. Novamont production facilities are repurposed manufacturing sites that convert idle infrastructure into 21st-century bio-refineries on the cutting edge of chemistry and manufacturing.
Through the rehabilitation of abandoned production sites, the company reignites local economies and creates high-quality jobs.
Sources: An Economic Impact Analysis of the U.S. Biobased Products Industry: 2023 Update, The U.S. Bioscience Economy: Driving Economic Growth and Opportunity in States and Regions TECONOMY / BIO 2024, and The Growing U.S. Bioeconomy: Drivers, Development, and Constraints.