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Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
8/15/2015
Project acronym: BERST Project full title: "BioEconomy Regional Strategy Toolkit "
Grant agreement no: 613671
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 2
1.1 Bioeconomy clusters ............................................................................................. 3
1.2 Key assets and development paths of bioeconomy clusters ................................ 3
1.3 Bioeconomy clusters in BERST project .................................................................. 5
2. BioBase Westland (the Netherlands) ......................................................................... 6
2.1 Executive summary ............................................................................................... 6
2.2 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 7
2.3 Environmental and socio-economic indicators of the region and clusters .......... 9
2.4 Analysis of the development path of the biocluster ........................................... 12
2.5 Concluding remarks and lessons for other regions ............................................ 22
2.6 References/ Links ................................................................................................ 26
1. Introduction
The BERST project explains the bioeconomy development path of a) BERST regions
and b) selected Good Practices. Aim is to provide a practical guide and source of
inspiration for other regions that wish to develop their bioeconomy potential. Under
this analysis:
- BERST regions are structured narratives for development pathways of
clusters in different bioeconomy sectors in the regions of partners in the
BERST project;
- Good Practices are examples of regions that contain one or more successful
bioeconomy clusters at the mature production stage.
Especially, Good Practices have been analysed in order to:
- understand how the various key assets interacted and performed during the
development stages;
- draw a number of lessons for the development of bioeconomy clusters within
their respective regions; and
- provide recommendations to other regions and clusters for each key asset
and each bioeconomy sector on which issues they have to take into account
in order to establish, develop and successfully operate similar clusters.
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1.1 Bioeconomy clusters
The bioeconomy can be described in terms of an economy that ‘encompasses the
production of renewable biological resources and their conversion into food, feed,
bio-based products and bioenergy. In BERST, a bioeconomy cluster is perceived as a
geographical concentration of actors in vertical and horizontal relationships aiming
to develop the bioeconomy. Bioeconomy clusters have been categorised to allow
comparison and better understand synergies and interactions of the various
elements involved in the formation of bioregions. BERST recognises eight
bioeconomy sectors, namely:
- primary biomass;
- food and feed;
- construction;
- chemicals and polymers;
- pulp and paper;
- textile and clothing;
- energy;
- R&D biotechnology.
Given the broad coverage of sectors within the bioeconomy, bioeconomy clusters
might be rather heterogeneous in their specific focus. The development and
marketing of bioeconomy products does not differ from other products: the
challenge is to introduce competitive bioeconomy products that can be sold in
profitable quantities on the basis of its price, quality, and service combination
preferred by buyers over that offered by competing products. This implies that in the
analysis of the development of the bioeconomy clusters the same three factors play
a role as in the case of clusters aiming at the introduction and marketing of
televisions or cars: input-output linkages among firms, social capital and institutional
thickness.
1.2 Key assets and development paths of bioeconomy clusters
The input-output linkages among firms, social capital and institutional thickness in
the cluster are all embodied by actors with varying properties. In the analysis of the
development path of a bioeconomy cluster, we assume that the actors of the region,
in which the cluster is located, apply a strategy to develop the bioeconomy by
transforming biomass into competitive bioeconomy products. Such a transformation
process takes time. Hence, our analysis is guided by two starting points:
1. a focus on five key assets of a bioeconomy cluster, as outlined in our conceptual model for the analysis of the strategy of a bioeconomy cluster (Fig. 1). These are:
a. entrepreneurs: the presence of an entrepreneurial culture with active, innovative, flexible and risk taking entrepreneurs plays a pivotal role in driving clusters towards successful development;
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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b. policymakers: political leaders who are willing to support the development of the bioeconomy by providing governance, institutional structures and financial support;
c. knowledge institutes: organizations that provide the technical knowhow and innovation for the development of bioeconomy products;
d. availability of biomass resources: a continuous supply of biomass resources of constant quality is critical for the development of bioeconomy products;
e. competitive bioeconomy products: commercially viable products, such as chemicals, medicines, food, bioplastics, transport fuels, electricity and heat.
2. a long run time horizon of a bioeconomy cluster, with 3 phases (Fig. 2): a. initial stage and take off: the bioeconomy is introduced in the
regional planning agenda and the policy, socio-economic and R&D landscape for its establishment and operation is created;
b. drive to maturity: he first competitive bioeconomy products are sold at the market. The cluster grows with the setup of new companies, cluster infrastructure (with incubator, training centre etc.) has been established, and the cluster is able to attract both private and public funding
c. age of mature production: the cluster is able to produce competitive bioeconomy products at an extensive scale.
The exact duration of each of these phases differs from cluster to cluster; according to estimates of PwC (2011) the duration of the initial stage and take off is about 5 years, that of the drive to maturity 5-10 years, and that of the age of mature production 10-20 years.
Figure 1 Conceptual model for the analysis of the strategy of a bioeconomy cluster
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Figure 2 The development path of a bioeconomy cluster
1.3 Bioeconomy clusters in BERST project
The bioeconomy clusters that are analysed in BERST are distinguished in ‘Good
Practices’, i.e. bioeconomy clusters within the age of mature production, and ‘BERST
regions’, i.e. bioeconomy clusters in the regions of partners in the BERST project
(Table 1).
Table 1 Studied bioeconomy clusters in BERST
Good Practices BERST regions
Ghent (Belgium) Central Finland (Finland)
North Rhine Westfalia (Germany) Straubing (Germany)
Toulouse (France) Biobase Westland (Netherlands)
Manchester (UK) Biobased Delta (Netherlands)
Madrid region (Spain)
Western Macedonia (Greece)
Slovenia
The bioeconomy clusters in the BERST regions are in varying stages of development,
and some of them can also be regarded as Good Practices (Central Finland, lower
Bavaria, Biobase Westland and Biobased Delta). Statistical data, literature and
interviews with key actors have been used to collect information on the functioning
of each bioeconomy cluster. The analyses of the bioeconomy clusters of the Good
Practices have provided a number of key findings on the interaction of actors in the
cluster. Subsequently, in the analysis of the BERST regions it has been explored to
which extent the key findings of the Good Practices also apply for these bioeconomy
clusters and which barriers they face in developing the bioeconomy cluster. The
analysis in BERST focuses primarily on the Good Practice mature bioeconomy sectors
within the study countries, but as the clusters encompass more than one sector, the
performance and interactions of key assets is expected to influence them as well.
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2. BioBase Westland (the Netherlands) Authors: Arie van der Bent (Wageningen UR), Judith Zuiderwijk-Groenewegen and
Jan Smits (Gemeente Westland) and Calliope Panoutsou (Imperial)
Place and date: Wageningen,‘s-Gravenzande and London, June 2015
2.1 Executive summary
The Westland area in South Holland is the location of an internationally recognised
horticulture industry. Its location on the coast provides favourable climate conditions
year-round, including relatively high light intensity. In addition, the region lies
between several Dutch cities and towns and has good transport connections,
including road and air. Westland is a prosperous and innovative area, in part due to
fast-growing agribusiness. In the greenhouse cluster, there is extensive cooperation
through the value chain, including suppliers, producers, traders and knowledge
institutes. Total annual turnover in the region is approximately two billion euros.
The Municipality of Westland had the initiative to start a biobased cluster in 2013.
The main driver was the presence of a large area of greenhouses (approximately
3.000 ha) with vegetables, flowers and plants and the concept was to use residue
materials such as stems, leaves and class 3 products. Key recommendations were
drawn from the interviews and categorised as follows.
Organisation:
Do not make it complex but start partnerships with strong innovative companies
or parties and focus on smart portfolio of projects.
Actors:
Mid- and long-term commitment and a shared vision is essential, as well as good
communication.
Biomass supply:
Concentrate supplies on a biobase valorisation facility where in cascade useful
components are extracted. Start with an almost economic feasible business case
and develop additional value by extracting more components.
Competitive biobased products:
Focus on market demand for functionality and strong preference for natural
products.
Funding:
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Involve industrial or private partners and support them with governmental
subsidies.
Policy and measures:
Arrange a portfolio of policy measures including knowledge, finances,
communication, matchmaking events, licences and an entrepreneurs’ platform.
2.2 Introduction
The work presented here provides a structured narrative for the development of the
biocluster in Westland, which may serve as a practical guidance and source of
inspiration for other regions that are willing to develop their bioeconomy potential.
It is based on analysis of statistical data, literature and interviews with key actors
involved in the development of bioeconomy and the biocluster in the region.
The report is structured in three main chapters. Chapter 2 provides an overview of
the socio-economic and environmental situation in the region. Chapter 3 translates
the findings from literature review, stakeholder interviews and consultations with
regional partners in a narrative that follows the two main dimensions of the analysis
conducted in BERST; i.e key assets and long time horizon. Finally, chapter 4 provides
concluding remarks, lessons learnt, opportunities, barriers and recommendations.
The Westland Cluster has been categorised into sectors in order to allow comparison
and better understand synergies and interactions of the various elements involved in
the formation of bioregions. The BERST project recognises eight bioeconomy sectors,
agreed with regional partners and interviewees, namely: primary biomass; food;
construction; chemicals and polymers; pulp and paper; textile and clothing; energy;
R&D services.
Two research dimensions have been used to analyse the development of the
bioeconomy sectors within the bioclusters in the study regions, as follows:
1. Clusters’ key assets and their interaction
2. Time horizon and stages of development
Clusters’ key assets and their interaction
Clusters can be considered forms of network structures. A cluster is characterised by
multiple, networked groups or teams who seek to accomplish organizational
objectives. Team-based organizations offer much by way of flexibility while projects
can be approached on a planned or ad hoc basis.
The actors in a cluster are thus a key asset. Several groups play a key role, as follows:
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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• Entrepreneurs. The presence of entrepreneurial culture plays a pivotal role in
driving clusters towards successful development. Clusters usually leverage on the
presence and active participation of various individuals with an entrepreneurial
spirit who are flexible, risk-takers and willing to try new ideas. The level of
entrepreneurial culture can therefore be seen as a critical success factor whereas
low levels of entrepreneurship would be a cause for concern (PWC, 2011).
• Policymakers. Political leaders who are willing to support the development of the
bioeconomy, providing governance, institutional structures and financial support.
• Knowledge institutes. Organisations that provide technical know-how and
innovation for the development of bio-products.
Other assets involved in clusters are:
Biomass supply: Consistent provision of biomass resources is critical. The analysis
of case studies and best practices in BERST project includes both indigenous raw
material streams and imports (if applicable) and elaborates on the advantages
and disadvantages of each option to the cluster development pathway.
Competitive bioeconomy products: commercially viable products such as fine
chemicals, medicines, food, chemicals, bioplastics, transport fuels, electricity and
heat.
Funding: consistent funding both from public and private sources, new funding
resources and attractive funding mechanisms for the entrepreneurs and
investors.
Policies and measures: legislative and policy framework conditions affecting the
introduction of products made from biomass including measures relating to
legislation, policies, standards, labels, certification and public procurement.
Time horizon and stages of development
Biocluster development passes through three main stages, typically taking 10- 15
years to reach maturity. The challenges at the initiation of the biocluster differ from
that during a mature stage. Hence it makes sense to distinguish the phases in the
development path of the biocluster. This dimension forms the basis for the second
starting point in the analysis within BERST.
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It takes considerable time from the launch of a bioeconomy cluster to the time by
which a mature cluster is in place. In the analysis of the development path in BESRT
project, we distinguish three phases1:
• Initial stage and take off (IS): Introducing the bioeconomy in the regional
planning agenda and creating the policy, socio-economic and R&D landscape for
its establishment and operation.
• Drive to maturity (DMS): The first competitive bioeconomy products are sold at
the market. The cluster grows with the setup of new companies, cluster
infrastructure (incubator, training centre etc.) has been established, and the
cluster is able to attract both private and public funding.
• Age of mature production (MS): The cluster is able to produce competitive
bioeconomy products at an extensive scale.
The duration of each of these stages differs from region to region; according to
estimates of PwC (2011)2 the duration of the initial stage and take off is about 5
years, that of the drive to maturity 5-10 years and that of the age of mature
production 10-20 years. Within each stage, we analyse the interaction of the key
assets, as given in our conceptual model. It is notable that clusters studies were
considered to be either in initial stage or in the drive to maturity stage. No clusters
were considered to be fully mature although, in some regions, elements of clusters
had reached mature state of development (link to chapter from the main report).
2.3 Environmental and socio-economic indicators of the region and clusters
The region
1 Inspired by Rostow’s stages of growth.
2PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2011), Regional Biotechnology: Establishing a methodology and
performance indicators for assessing bioclusters and bioregions relevant to the KBBE area; Brussels;
via website: http://ec.europa.eu/research/bioeconomy/pdf/regional-biotech-report.pdf
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Figure 2.1 Map of Westland region
Westland is a region of the Netherlands and lies in the western part of the Province
of South Holland. It consists of the municipalities of Westland and Midden-Delfland,
and also of the town of Hook of Holland (which is a part of the municipality of
Rotterdam). Tables 2.1 and 2.2 provide overview data on population and
employment
Table 2.1 Basic facts about population in Westland
NUTS-3 region Delft en Westland
European countries (Nuts0) Netherlands
Population [inhabitants] 220046 16779600
Population Growth [% annual growth] 0.42 0.36
land area (1000 km2) [1000 km2] 0.164 41.543
Population Density [percentage] 1341.7 403.9
Population <15 year [percentage] 15.5 17.2
Population 15-65 years [percentage] 68.9 66
Population >65 years [percentage] 15.6 16.8
The Westland area is known for its horticulture. Its location on the coast leads to a
favourable climate conditions year-round, including relatively high light density
which is beneficial for horticulture. In addition, the region lies between several Dutch
cities and towns and has good transport connections, including road and air.
Westland is a prosperous and innovative area, due to fast-growing developments in
the field of agribusiness. In the greenhouse cluster, there is extensive cooperation
between supplying companies, production, trade and knowledge institutes. Total
annual turnover in the region is approximately two billion euros .
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The region has identified five focus economic activities around which the capabilities,
target markets and strategic development priorities are shaped, bioeconomy, digital
economy and knowledge based economy.
Table 2.2 Environmental and socio-economic indicators of Westland
NUTS-3 region Delft en Westland
European countries (Nuts0) Netherlands
Total employment [employees] 113908 8017144
Agricultural employment as % in total employment [percentage]
9.4 2.3
Industrial employment as % in total employment [percentage]
7.2 10
Service employment as % in total employment [percentage] 83.4 87.7
GDP [mio_euro] 8212 599047
GDP (PPP; EU=100) [index (EU=100)] 128 129
GDP in chemical sector as % of regional GDP (est) [% in GVA] 0.3 1.2
GDP in energy sector as % of regional GDP (est) [% in GVA] 1.5 0.5
R&D expenditure [index (EU=1)] 0.476 0.675
% primary education [percentage] 24.6 24.2
% Secundary & Tertiary education [percentage] 75.4 75.8
Table 2.3 Focus economic activities for South Netherlands (source: S3Platform)3
Description Capabilities Target Markets EU Priorities
Organic aromatics 1. Manufacturing & industry 2. Chemicals & chemical products
1. Energy production & distribution 2. Power generation/renewable sources
1. Sustainable innovation 2. Sustainable energy & renewables
Promoting linkages between research and development centres and diverse sectoral clusters, promoting implementation of newly developed innovations
1. Services 2. Scientific research & development
1. Manufacturing & industry
1. Specific local policy priority
Research centre for food and health
1. Services 2. Scientific research & development
1. Human health & social work activities
1. Public health & security 2. Food security & safety
3 http://s3platform.jrc.ec.europa.eu/regions/nl4
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Supply chain innovation 1. Transporting & storage 2. Warehousing & support activities for transportation (logistics storage)
1. Manufacturing & industry
1. Service innovation 2. New or improved organisational models
Cluster development, linkages between private sector and educational research facilities
1. Services 2. Education
1. Manufacturing & industry
1. Service innovation 2. New or improved organisational models
The cluster of Westland
The initiative to start a biobased cluster was undertaken by the Municipality of
Westland in 2013. The main driver was the presence of a large area (approximately
3.000 ha) of greenhouses with vegetables, flowers and plants and the concept was to
use residue materials such as stems,leaves and class 3 products.
Table 2.4 Employment and firms dynamics in bioeconomy sectors in Westland, 2004-2013
Employment Firms Micro- firms
2004 2013 2004 2013 2004 2013
Agriculture regional 12,097 10,698 2,080 1,310 0 1194
Agriculture national 215,015 186,186 71,199 64,235 0 62374
% of national 6 6 3 2 2
Energy regional 1895 1678 8 8 0 6
Energy national 33929 37491 586 744 0 947
% of national 6 4 1 1 1
Pulp & paper regional
653 557 68 59 0 49
Pulp & paper national
76628 61090 7291 6882 0 5778
% of national 1 1 1 1 1
Construction regional
7,482 6,627 2,040 1,993 0 1,881
Construction national
465,242 397,251 116,739 121,003 0 115,452
% of national 2 2 2 2 2
Chemicals regional 366 393 14 16 0 13
Chemicals national 100905 94287 2397 2319 0 1947
% of national 0 0 1 1 1
Total regional 120527 113908 15744 15219 0 16,240
Total national 8163638 8017144 1147170 1286261 0 1,150,510
2.4 Analysis of the development path of the biocluster
This chapter translates the findings from literature review, stakeholder interviews
and consultations with regional partners in a narrative that follows the two main
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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dimensions of the analysis conducted in BERST i.e. key assets and long time horizon.
The work presented here provides comparative analysis of the key assets, their
performance and rationale as well as their evolution and interactions across the
development stages of the cluster. The outputs from this analysis facilitate the
development of recommendations i) for the cluster’s successful transition to the
next stage and ii) for other clusters with similar characteristics in terms of sectors
and assets.
Lines of demarcation
Before the key assets for Bio Base Westland are discussed, it is important to exactly
specify which (sub) sectors are covered and why.
Bio Base Westland builds upon the strength of mature regional sectors, to develop
new, explicitly biobased, economic activities that are therefore generally still in the
initial stage. The biobased economy is a subset of the total bioeconomy and does not
include the food sector.
(I) This case study exclusively covers biobased economy sectors.
One opportunity for the region is that a high volume of biomass is already produced
locally, mostly from agricultural activity. There is also the opportunity to import
biomass from nearby sea ports. Sectors downstream in the value chain are selected
on the basis of the anticipated economic activity boost from the processing of this
biomass. In many cases, this involves a gradual shift from the currently used fossil
feedstock to biomass in sectors that are already important in the region. Another
opportunity is the production of special plants dedicated to produce plant extracts
and plant compounds for high end markets such as pharmaceuticals.
(II) The seven specific sectors that are included are:
- the primary biomass sector - paper and cardboard - building materials - biofuels & bioenergy - pharmaceutical purposes - cosmetics - green pesticides
- food additives such as aroma compounds, vegetal E-numbers, colourants
The last four of them are grouped in the chemicals & polymers bioeconomy sector
for the BERST analysis.
Replacement of fossil feedstock by biomass is a transition that is generally accepted
to take decades to reach significant scale. This introduces a potential definition
problem when describing assets and rating the degree of maturity of the sectors
downstream in the value chain. The sectors are mature already, but their transition
to biobased sectors is in its initial stage.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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We distinguish two biobased subsectors that differ strongly in their maturity:
A. The mature primary biomass subsector. This ‘traditional’ sector mainly
concentrates on producing food and flowers, but also produces large waste
streams that can be valorised in the biobased economy.
B. The initial stage primary biomass subsector. This consists of three areas:
Specific crops for natural fibres
Specific crops for high value ingredients
Summarizing:
(IV) Combining I and II, only the part of the primary biomass sector that provides
biomass for the biobased economy is covered. This part is split in two subsectors
A mature subsector* (P1), of which only the waste stream output is relevant
and covered in this study;
An initial stage subsector (P2), which specifically produces biomass for the
biobased economy.
A final issue that needs to be addressed is the assignment of biorefinery activities to
one or more of the above subsectors. As a process, biorefinery is the splitting of
(generally complex) biomass in fractions that can be individually used in any of the
subsectors downstream from primary production (food, feed, chemicals, energy,
etc). It generally consists of multiple individual steps, that could in principle take
place in each of the mentioned subsectors. Biorefinery activities may dramatically
increase the value of the processed biomass stream, depending on the isolated
compounds and their purity. It is therefore a great opportunity for new economic
activity as well. Without major innovations in biorefinery, the biobased economy
(‘new bioeconomy’) on which Bio Base Westland concentrates cannot be realized in
full. As it takes place at the interface between sectors, it is a matter of definition to
which subsector biorefinery is assigned.
(V) In this case study, biorefinery is considered to be (an implicit) part of the
individual downstream subsectors that use the separated fractions as input.
NB: There are exceptions, but these are made explicit where appropriate.
Table 3.1 presents the performance of the various bioeconomy sectors which are
present in the cluster across the key assets, during the initial (IS) and the drive to
maturity stage (DMS), based on the results from the questionnaire survey. Details on
how the individual key assets performed across the two development stages are
provided in the following sections alongside with barriers and enabling factors which
have framed their progress. Traffic light colour coding has been introduced to reflect
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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the strength and performance of each key asset during the development stages and
how this has impacted in the progress of the cluster’s activities. The ranking of the
traffic light coding reflects the discussions with stakeholders from the clusters and
the under study region as well as the regional partners from the BERST project.
Table 3.1 Cluster performance in the under study key assets
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors IS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Cluster Organisation
4
Actors5
Entrepreneurs
Policy makers
Knowledge institutes
Biomass supply
6
Competitive bioeconomy product
7
Funding8
Policies and measures
9
Low Moderate High
Biocluster organization
Table 3.2 Cluster performance in biocluster organisation
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors IS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Central organisation that coordinates, manages, and facilitates the
4 An organizational structure with many groups or teams to accomplish organizational objectives. 5 The key types of actors involved in the cluster formation and operation 6 The consistent provision of biomass resources at given prices throughout the operational periods 7 The commercial/ cost competitive products such as fine chemicals/medicines, food, chemicals/bioplastics, transport fuels, electricity and heat 8 Consistent funding both from public and private sources, new funding resources and attractive funding mechanisms for the entrepreneurs and investors. 9 Measures related to legislation, policies, standards, labels, certification and public procurement.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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biocluster
Role of key actors
Entrepreneurs
Policy
RTD
Funding
The performance of the understudy bioeconomy sectors in terms of organisation has
been developing, but still in the initial stage.
The role of key actors has been different.
Barriers
The economic crisis has made it hard for growers to invest in this development.
Moreover, because the transition to a biobased economy takes many years, it is
hard to keep the frontrunners enthusiastic. Legislation is a barrier, because
residual streams are considered to be waste, which prevents the application as a
substrate for new products.
Enabling factors
Consistent participation of entrepreneurs and good cross sector collaboration
among primary and end use sectors.
The belief that we need a new economic business model and a more sustainable
economy.
Subsidies
Real market demand by end users
Actors
Various actors have been participating in the biocluster; their functionality and role
are briefly described below.
The municipality of Westland delivers the chairmanship of the Steering
Committee Bio Base Westland and program management. They also deliver a
financial contribution to the innovation and action plan and provides policy
input.
The tomato company Lans Westland Holding BV contributes actively to the
program and delivers tomatoes and their waste / residual materials for sub-
projects.
Duijvestijn Tomatoes also contributes actively to the program and develops
various initiatives to valorise the tomatoes and waste materials from the
company.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Van Vliet Contrans also contributes actively and is leader of the project in which
the fibres of tomatostems are refined and used for making paper and cardboard
for tomato boxes.
LTO Glaskracht Westland actively contributes to the Steering Committee Bio Base
Westland.
FloraHolland actively contributes to the Steering Committee Bio Base Westland
and participates in various projects.
Rabobank Westland actively contributes to the Steering Committee.
Van der Windt develops and spreads biobased packaging materials.
The Chamber of Commerce actively contributes to the organization of meetings
and clustering. They connect chain parties and connects knowledge institutes
with SMEs.
The Expert Center for Plant Compounds provides knowledge and information
about promising product-market combinations and plant compounds. They
contribute actively to the Steering Committee Bio Base Westland.
The Province of South Holland actively contributes to the Steering Committee Bio
Base Westland. They contribute financial to the innovation and action plan and
provide policy input.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs is a partner in the Green Deal Biobased
Valorisation Park Westland. They actively contribute to the project.
Inholland takes care of the organization and supervision of a knowledgegroup
with (horticulture) entrepreneurs and plays an active role in translating issues for
entrepreneurs in knowledge projects. They do research on "Successful business
and network models for the valorization of biomass in horticulture'' and
opportunities for "Creating Additional Market Value out of Fruit & Vegetables".
Frans Zwinkels Project and Technology is leader of the project biobased tomato
boxes 2015
Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture researches (improved) production of
components in existing glasshouse crops and cultivation methods for developing
new crops.
Perfect Plants Holding is engaged in the cultivation of crops for winning plant
compounds and extracts for use in the pharmaceutical industry.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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The program is financed by the Province of Zuid-Holland and the municipality of
Westland.
Table 3.3 Cluster performance in actors involved
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors IS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Entrepreneurs activity
Interaction of entrepreneurs with RTD
Geopolitical position of the region
Policy makers
The commitment of the regional policy makers is rather strong because they really
believe in the development of the biobased economy and are willing to spend time
and money on it. The most important policy actors and their role is briefly described
below.
The municipality of Westland delivers the chairmanship of the Steering
Committee Bio Base Westland and program management. They also deliver a
financial contribution to the innovation and action plan and provides policy
input.
The Province of South Holland actively contributes to the Steering Committee Bio
Base Westland. They contribute financial to the innovation and action plan and
provide policy input.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs is a partner in the Green Deal Biobased
Valorisation Park Westland. They actively contribute to the project. They support
the mission and their main commitment is skipping legal obstacles.
R&D institutes
Several R&D institutions have been participating in the biocluster, their functionality
and role are briefly described below.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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The Expert Center for Plant Compounds provides knowledge and information
about promising product-market combinations and plant compounds. They
contribute actively to the Steering Committee Bio Base Westland.
Inholland takes care of the organization and supervision of a knowledgegroup
with (horticulture) entrepreneurs and plays an active role in translating issues for
entrepreneurs in knowledge projects. They do research on "Successful business
and network models for the valorization of biomass in horticulture'' and
opportunities for "Creating Additional Market Value out of Fruit & Vegetables".
Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture researches (improved) production of
components in existing glasshouse crops and cultivation methods for developing
new crops.
Leiden University is partner in an project which aims to produce plant
compounds against obesitas. They are testing the functionality of plant
compounds on health and wellbeing aspects.
Barriers
It is a difficult task to find market partners willing to use the plant compounds in
their products.
Enabling factors
Strong commitment from policy makers because they really believe in the
development of the biobased economy and are willing to spend time and money
on it.
Strong collaboration with R&D, regional partners and entrepreneurs in several
EU and nationally funded projects.
Secure start-up funding from regional government.
Biomass supply
Biomass supply is primarily based on the residuals from flowers-, vegetables- and
plants production; and specifically grown plants in greenhouses under optimal and
controlled growing conditions.
Barriers
It is hard to have long-term contracts for obtaining biomass with the many
different entrepreneurs in the region.
Enabling factors
High biomass availability from the well-developed agricultural sector
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
20
Some strong cooperatives with high entrepreneurial culture in the region.
Table 3.4 Cluster performance in biomass supply
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors IS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Biomass availability
Indigenous supply
Biomass trade
Funding
Cluster actors were able to get access to these public funds. They were used for
research, communication and pilots.
Table 3.6 Cluster performance in funding
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors IS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Public funds
Accessibility to funds
Private funds
Barriers
Due to the economic crisis it has been hard for the growers to invest.
Enabling factors
EU funding through projects
Strong and continuous project development activities with the collaboration of
R&D and entrepreneurs.
Policies and measures
The key drivers for policy formation in the region so far have been The Municipality
of Westland, Province of South-Holland, the Ministry of Economic affairs and the
European Union.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
21
The Bio Base Westland agenda is embedded in the national policy ‘topsectoren
beleid’ (i.e.: topsector policy) and in provincial economic policies. In this framework
Bio Base Westland is partner in the national innovation and research agenda ‘New
business with high quality and green plant compounds from horticulture’.
Table 3.7 Cluster performance in policies and measures
Key asset
Primary Biomass sectors MS
Paper and cardboard IS
Building materials IS
Pharmaceutical purposes IS
Cosmetics IS
Green pesticides IS
Food additives IS
Biofuels & bioenergy DMS
Presence of policy instruments
Effectiveness of policy instruments
Consistency of policy
Monitoring procedures
An important policy driver so far has been the so-called Green Deals (in which the
national government commits to take away legislation difficulties that hamper new
sustainable activities/processes/products), agreements of intention, subsidy
programs of the province (clusterregeling) and Topsectorprogram.
Barriers
Legislation in national and EU laws discourages the application of rest streams.
Rest streams are considered as waste with all kinds of limiting factors.
The fragmented nature of the various bio-based economy sectors prohibits the
fast design and uptake of cross sector targets and the subsequent sectorial policy
alignment.
The environmental impact of fossil substrates is not part of the price. Because of
that fossil fuels have an advantage.
Enabling factors
Consistency and stability of policy aims and targets.
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
22
Strong involvement from local government from the initial stage
Reinforcement of trans-regional and international perspective would expand
business development prospects.
2.5 Concluding remarks and lessons for other regions
Difficulties and opportunities during the initial and drive to maturity stages
The long term of the transition (to keep everybody enthusiastic) and the financial
crisis (especially for the growers). To find market partners willing to use the plant
compounds in their products
Opportunity: The belief that we need a new economic business model and a
more sustainable economy.
Lessons learnt
General lessons from the development of the bio-cluster in Westland
In this section a set of general lessons have been collected based on the interviews
with different stakeholders in the Good Practice clusters/ regions. The lessons are
linked to the under study key assets (cluster organisation, actors, biomass supply,
competitive biobased products, funding and policies/ measures) and are further
evaluated with the support of the regional agency as opportunities and/or barriers
for the future development of the cluster in Westland to foster the development of
concise recommendations.
The analysis presented in Table 4.1 is further integrated into the last section of this
chapter dealing with recommendations for the region.
Table 4.1 General lessons drawn from good practice clusters with opportunities and barriers in exploiting them in Westland.
General lesson Key asset related to
Stage related to
Opportunities/ Barriers
Triple helix is beneficial; Academic sector, public administration sector and industry and private sector.
Cluster organisation
Initial Opportunity
Networking is of great importance, in particular joint actions with different target groups having the same targets.
Actors Initial Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
Relatively open and close cooperation and common targets, shared visions and a kind of open innovation system to some extent.
Actors Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
Location close to raw material is a key success factor Biomass supply Initial Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
The scale and nature of supply & logistics is complex; it is therefore very important that local industry and
Biomass supply Drive to maturity
Opportunity
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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regional authorities have strong collaborations Maturity
The development of competitive biobased products should meet the requirements of industrial actors and be supported by them
Competitive Biobased products
Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
Start up financing from the industry creates better prospects for product development and market uptake
Competitive Biobased products
Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
Policies with a long term orientation on bioeconomy are more likely to be successful.
Policies Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
The future strategy and perspectives of the cluster should be carefully considered with the participation of the industry.
Policy Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
If business development is only dependent on public funding, then there is a risk.
Funding Drive to maturity Maturity
We agree
Subsidies for initial investments in bioenergy have been crucial.
Funding Drive to maturity Maturity
We agree
Provide for short-, middle- and long term successes. Keep everybody enthusiastic.
Cluster organisation and Actors
Drive to maturity Maturity
Opportunity
It is favourable for a Cluster to identify at an early stage those objectives that are
common and fundamental for most – if not all – of its members and that all of its
members are willing to support and commonly pursue in due time.
It also takes a committed core of people that maintain their focus upon developing
the Cluster’s activities. Funding is important for the initial stage, because it allows for
the events and meetings that will help create the initial momentum of the Cluster.
Table 4.2 Specific lessons learnt in Westland compared to good practices
Specific lessons per key asset
Specific lessons Bioeconomy sectors10
Organisation Triple helix co-operations should (eventually) have companies in the lead. Actual commitment for a number of years is essential.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Green pesticides
It is essential to focus on realising business cases and develop a project portfolio with focus on both short (to show early successes and keep people interested) and long term (to reach large impact stadium).
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Pharmaceutical purposes Green pesticides Food additives
Expectation management is important, particularly towards policy makers: the transition of a biobased economy will take more than a decade.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
10
The bioeconomy sectors defined in BERST
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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Actors Effective cooperation between agro and chemistry requires parties to overcome large differences in cultures and interests. This is a time consuming process.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Research organisations have strong expertise and international leadership
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Strong cooperatives with high entrepreneurial culture in the region.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Products Variability of bio-based market sectors increases the complexity for cross over technological transfers, scaling up of new pathways and commercialisation of new bio-base products.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Efficient transfer of knowledge and high rates of adoption of innovation
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Funding Financial instruments of governments really help business development for new, high risk activities.
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy
Policies Strategic/plan should be based on the strengths of local bioeconomy (availability of biomass, knowledge institutions, logistics, availability of crossover industries (energy, process industry, food, feed, pharma, technology providers).
Primary Biomass sectors Paper and cardboard Building materials Pharmaceutical purposes Cosmetics Green pesticides Food additives Biofuels & bioenergy Reinforcement of trans- regional and
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
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international perspective would expand business development prospects.
It is essential to focus on realising business cases. Do not develop many formal
organisations and relationships; this takes up a lot of time that should be spent on
concrete projects.
For the large transition agenda, international cooperation in Europe (and abroad) is
necessary. European funding of flagships and demo’s is important.
Try to connect the whole value chain, try not to work with (too many) competing
companies.
Organise sufficient development power: companies often need intermediates that
connecting value chains.
Recommendations
Based on the conclusions and the general and specific lessons presented in the
tables above, recommendations are provided for the transition to the next
development stage (maturity) for each of the key assets examined in the previous
sections..
The key recommendations for organisation include the following:
Don’t make it complex but start partnerships with strong innovative companies
or parties and focus on smart portfolio of projects.
The key recommendations for actors include the following:
Mid- and long-term commitment and a shared vision is essential, as well as good
communication.
The key recommendations for biomass supply include the following:
Concentrate supplies on a biobase valorisation facility where in cascade useful
components are extracted. Start with an almost economic feasible business case
and develop additional value by extracting more components.
The key recommendations for competitive biobased products include the following:
Focus on market demand for functionality and strong preference for natural
products.
The key recommendations for funding include the following:
Case Study (BERST region): Biobase Westland
26
Involve industrial or private partners and support them with governmental
subsidies.
The key recommendations for policy and measures include the following:
Arrange a portfolio of policy measures including knowledge, finances,
communication, matchmaking events, licences and an entrepreneurs’ platform.
2.6 References/ Links www.gemeentewestland.nl
www.biobasewestland.nl
Recommended