Quickly, the world gets critical of plastic waste. It litters land, waterways and oceans. Until quite recently, rich countries could export their waste to poorer countries – for them to sort out the difficult tail of consumer society. But since … Read more
When researchers discovered the CRISPR-Cas mechanism, it was looked upon as the perfect instrument for genetic modification (GM). But it appears to have its flaws. Flaws that might be inherent to life and to nature as such. This is a … Read more
The Dutch Cabinet has determined missions to tackle major societal issues, and Dutch knowledge sectors are currently drawing up Knowledge and Innovation Agendas on how to support the realisation of these missions. I just finished reading the joint innovation agenda … Read more
Evolved by Nature has developed pure liquid silk; properly speaking: silk in solution. This substance will enable yarns to be covered with silk. They will then have the properties that lend such an exquisite quality to silk: soft on the … Read more
Science rests on reductionism: the reduction of complex issues to digestible bits. From there, researchers try to piece together the bigger picture. But in the life sciences we now see a movement towards holism: the concept that life’s manifestations can … Read more
Fish farming is increasingly important. More than half of the fish consumed by mankind is farmed fish already, and its share is on the rise. Without fish farming, we would not be able to consume our average diet of 20 … Read more
Eco-friendly personal care is one of the topics in the coming BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology in Des Moines, Iowa, July 8-11. Other topics include of course biotechnology and genetic modification, and the future of agriculture. Organized by BIO, … Read more
GreenTech 2019 is the major horticultural fair, to be held June 11-13 in Amsterdam. As they say themselves: ‘GreenTech 2019 brings people and technology together to increase growth, productivity, sustainability, inspiration and pleasure in horticulture. Because we believe that improvement and innovation … Read more
‘With our trade of indoor farming, we would like to contribute to the solution of global food problems,’ says Marc Kreuger of the Dutch company Seven Steps To Heaven. ‘That is our mission, and we will execute it. Far too … Read more
In cisgenesis, we insert new DNA in a stable form into plant DNA, just like in transgenesis. The difference being that in transgenesis, the new DNA originates from another species, in cisgenesis from a plant with which the acceptor plant … Read more
Through biosolar cells, researchers try to improve photosynthesis, the process through which plants, algae and some bacteria capture sunlight. The product of such ‘artificial leaves’ is hydrogen for instance, that can be processed to fuels and chemicals, with CO2 and … Read more
MaterialDistrict Rotterdam, the yearly exposition and conference on new materials, has 140 exhibitors this year, 200 new materials, presentations by 100 front-runner start-ups & designers, and op top of that a conference program with some 60 speakers. Rotterdam Ahoy will … Read more
The Bio-Based Industries Joint Undertaking, abbreviated as BBI JU, is in the final stages of the procedure to award funding for new research and development proposals. BBI JU is a €3.7 billion Public-Private Partnership between the EU and the Bio-based … Read more
To date, most 3D printed buildings have been built from concrete. Could 3D printed bioplastic be a more sustainable option? Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, is a major part of the fourth industrial revolution and it will transform the construction … Read more
BiofuelsDigest, the world’s most widely read biofuels daily, as they proudly claim, concluded in May this year that ‘The pace of invention and change is just too strong … to highlight annual or even quarterly or monthly rankings and summaries … Read more
Food security is becoming an important issue even in Europe, where this year’s summer drought has led to significant crop failures. How can future food security be guaranteed in times of climate change? Are digitisation, robotization, biostimulants medium and long-term … Read more
‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world’ (Nelson Mandela). Hans Tramper is professor emeritus in Bioprocess Technology at Wageningen University and reflects on the development of his subject in a series of essays. … Read more
In the entire discussion on biotechnological rejuvenation, very few researchers ask the question why this should be a goal worth pursuing. In a series of articles (July 25, July 28 and July 31) we explore the potential of biotechnology to … Read more
Biotechnology has now reached the point that some researchers target rejuvenation as their goal, ultimately in humans. With a slight hint of immortality behind the horizon. But if we look more carefully, they are still far removed from those targets. … Read more
Gene technology is a much-discussed technology with almost endless opportunities. Opponents have objected to it right from the start. Their worry was and is, that researchers do not exactly know what they’re doing when they adjust genes and modify the … Read more
Mycorrhiza fungi increase yields in a targeted and environmentally friendly way, robots help farmers to control weeds ecologically. Smallholders optimise outputs with sensors in the soil and with modern biorefineries. Both smallholder and organic farming can benefit greatly from technological … Read more
In 1973, Stanley Cohen and Herbert Boyer of Stanford University and University of California, did the first successful recombinant-DNA experiments on the bacterium Escherichia coli. Through genetic ‘cutting and pasting’ they succeeded in introducing resistance in this bacterium that inhabits … Read more
Imitating nature’s engineering secrets at the nanoscale could lead to a host of useful applications, like energy saving materials. Biomimicry, also called bionics, uses structures found in nature to solve everyday problems. A well-known example is the Velcro strip, which … Read more
Only quite recently historically speaking, mankind acquired the know-how to change the properties of living species: as people settled and developed agriculture. But it required a revolution, much later, to develop the knowledge to do this in a purposeful way. … Read more
1973 was a remarkable year. We witnessed the first global energy crisis, leading to motor car-free Sundays in the Netherlands. In the US, president Nixon had to resign because of the Watergate affair. In the scope of the series of … Read more
An interesting article in the Guardian, last week, shed light on new strategies to combat insect attacks on food and commercial crops, through genetic modification. But in such a way that the modified genes will not show up in the … Read more
The impact of the new technologies, such as robotics, drones and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing our food production system. Precision farming has shaken up a number of large companies to invest in the development of new solutions for future … Read more
The real sustainability revolution in farming is New Breeding Techniques like CRISPR. Why are organic farmers blocked from using them? This article by David Warmflash was originally published on the site of Genetic Literacy Project. Organic farming opposes genetic engineering … Read more
Many universities and innovative companies are looking for new ways to close the future protein gap for food and feed, and cover future protein demand on a sustainable basis. German nova-Institute compiled an overview of the latest developments. Nova-Institute organizes … Read more
The many ways in which mankind can produce natural compounds with biotechnology, impresses me. Smells, tastes, maybe texture in the near future, remember the synthetic burger, they are excellently produced by the bioreactor. One would expect that food industry would … Read more
Dealing with hospital waste can be a logistical nightmare. But some believe that if medical centres switched to bio-based and biodegradable disposable products, they could simplify their waste management and see other benefits, such as a lower carbon footprint and … Read more
Ahoy Rotterdam was the scene of the Material Xperience trade show. The show exhibited a large number of new and innovative materials. ‘Meet the future of materials’, was the slogan of the trade show, and bio-based, circular economy and sustainability … Read more
As global housing programs are gearing up, the world will need a staggering amount of construction material over the next few decades. This will put a strain on resources, and produce a lot of CO2; unless we discard the present … Read more
Textiles made from pineapple leaves, self-massaging clothes, dresses made from fungi… During Material Xperience 2018 (13-15 March, Ahoy Rotterdam), fashion professionals can enjoy the marvel and the opportunities of many new materials. Trends in new materials for fashion According to … Read more
Concrete degradation is one of the most costly problems of our time. Concrete will always crack, although less so if well-designed and well-constructed. Cracks will allow water and air to enter into the structure and eventually reach the steel reinforcement. … Read more
Cement production by itself is responsible for a stunning 5% of total global CO2 emissions. As global construction activities still gear up, we urgently need more sustainable concrete, no longer based on Portland cement, the basis of the construction industry … Read more
Whereas the two companies discussed in this series so far use fermentation technology to imitate silk, the American company Kraig Biocraft Laboratories uses the old workhorse, the silkworm. They introduced spider genes into the silkworm in order to arrive at … Read more
Spider silk combines properties that are very difficult to achieve for man-made materials. It is claimed to be 340 times stronger than steel; we are also told that a net woven from spider silk threads 1 cm thick would be … Read more
For a long time, silk has figured as a proverbial example of nature’s skills: strong and breathable, and soft to the skin as no man-made material could achieve. But we are about to cross this border: artificial silk has been … Read more
3D printing has the future. It will change the way in which we produce objects – maybe much less in factories and much more in shops around the corner. But so far, biobased materials have been difficult to 3D print. … Read more
The solar industry is in turmoil. The price of solar panels falls continuously and each year demand grows by 30%. This poses a major challenge to an industry that is quite sizeable already, with an expected turnover of some $ … Read more
Solar energy (photovoltaics, PV) is no longer that cute but hardly relevant technology of energy supply – it will evolve into the basis of our entire energy system. The world will have to take another look on PV: adapt itself … Read more
Researchers of the University of Bath (UK) and ModCell Ltd have developed straw as a low-impact and viable modern building material. As they say, ‘our research has made affordable, environmentally-friendly houses a reality. The first super-insulated, low-carbon straw houses are … Read more
Last 15 September the first Kipster opened its doors in Venray, the Netherlands, a chicken farm that calls itself ‘the most animal friendly and sustainable chicken farm in the world’. The designers of Kipster have not just paid attention to … Read more
Vredestein showed a prototype of its Fortezza Flower Power at the Eurobike exhibition in Friedrichshafen in August. This innovative road tyre is made of dandelion rubber. The prototype is the result of a EU joint initiative in which KeyGene, Vredestein … Read more
On August 5, the Biofuels Digest ran a story on chitosan, an exciting biobased substance with a bright future, almost unknown to the public so far (and unfortunately, also to industry). We highlighted it almost three years ago. Since then, … Read more
Cyrene is a biobased solvent intended to substitute toxic solvents in fine chemistry and pharmaceutical industries. It is produced by Circa, an Australian company that has partnered with the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence (GCCE) at the University of York, … Read more
At the end of May I visited a ‘Green Deal’ network meeting in Amersfoort, The Netherlands. The meeting itself wasn’t really interesting, but it was organized at a nice location, I met a number of interesting people during the drinks … Read more
In nature, many materials excel in precision. They perform very precise tasks – and as researchers delve into their functions, they discover that complexity is at the bottom of this precision. Almost all natural materials are composites, intricate mixtures of … Read more
‘Green PAC is the hub for green (fibre) chemistry in the North East Netherlands,’ says the organisation on its website. It initiates and facilitates business driven knowledge development. Green PAC (shorthand for Green Polymer Application Centre) is an initiative of … Read more