Statement CALL FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST: Bio-based Europe Alliance

1. Background and objectives of the Bio-based Europe Alliance

The European Commission adopted the Strategic Framework for a Competitive and Sustainable EU Bioeconomy (COM (2025) 960) in November 2025, setting out a comprehensive vision for accelerating the transition from fossil-based to bio-based materials, chemicals, and products. It calls for the creation of the Bio-based Europe Alliance, which aims to respond to a longstanding challenge facing Europe's bio-based sector: while significant public and private investment have supported research, innovation and demonstration activities, many promising companies continue to struggle to reach the commercial phase. As a result, innovative European startups are often acquired by non-European investors before reaching full industrial deployment, with economic value and strategic know-how leaving Europe.

The Bio-based Europe Alliance will be organised around a digital platform that will collect demand, and supply offers from companies and provide aggregation and matchmaking services, leading to collective purchasing for a wide range of bio-based materials and products. To respect competition rules, the buyers will purchase exclusively via the platform and submit requested volumes anonymously with no mention of price allowed. The platform might offer an option of having third companies acting as central buyers that will offer multiple purchasers to buy on their behalf.

The Bio-based Europe Alliance will promote lead markets for materials: biobased plastics and polymers; biobased fibers and fabrics; biobased chemicals; biobased construction products; biobased fertilizers and plant protection products; and lead markets for technologies: biorefineries, advanced fermentation and developing permanent storage of biogenic carbon.

The Bio-based Europe Alliance is established under the auspices of DG Environment, which will take on the role of the Secretariat in the start-up phase and later be potentially replaced by an independent entity. The objectives of the Bio-based Europe Alliance are to:

a. Create reliable and predictable demand signals for bio-based materials and products to de-risk investments in CAPEX-intensive biomanufacturing facilities, by providing a space where the producers of bio-based materials and products can be matched

b. Mobilise collective corporate purchasing commitments, reaching EUR 10 billion in offtake agreements by 2030;

c. Complement existing EU instruments (CBE JU, EIC, Innovation Fund, Invest EU) and related initiatives (European Bioeconomy Investment Deployment Group, European Bioeconomy Regulators and Innovators’ Forum) by addressing coordination, scale and timing gaps that hinder market deployment.

2. Purpose of this call

This open call for expression of interest invites EU-based corporate buyers, retailers and industrial users of materials; SMEs and scale-ups with significant market presence; Member States, national and regional authorities, as well as primary producers and cooperatives to apply for membership in the Bio-based Europe Alliance.
The consolidated list of members will be subject for formal approval by the European Commission, and the confirmation letters will be issued afterwards. Other stakeholders may express interest to participate (as observers).
The Alliance will operate in full compliance with Articles 101 and 102 TFEU and relevant EU competition rules. The Alliance will not enable the exchange of commercially sensitive information. Any demand aggregation will be anonymised and sufficiently aggregated, with appropriate safeguards.
Governance documents and the Rulebook will include clear competition compliance provisions and monitoring mechanisms to prevent anti-competitive conduct.

3. Mandate and scope of work

Members of the Bio-based Europe Alliance are expected to contribute to the Alliances objectives, including offtake agreements.
The commitments by the EU companies will be divided according to a tiered structure:
•Tier 1 – strategic pledges (non-binding) for early mobilisation, signalling market direction and attracting new members
•Tier 2 – framework/conditional agreements
•Tier 3 – binding offtake agreements

By 2028:
• At least 40-50% of the €10 billion target should consist of Tier 2 or Tier 3 agreements
• At least 25-30% should be fully binding (Tier 3)

By 2030:
• Majority should be binding or quasi-binding

The Bio-based Europe Alliance is established for an initial period of five years (2026-2030). The Alliance shall report annually:
- Progress towards the EUR 10 billion collective purchasing commitment
- Sectoral and technological coverage of offtake agreements
Membership is non-remunerated. Members participate in their institutional capacity. The scope of the work of the Alliance might be expanded if there is a need for a stronger governance structure and resources to guide the policy development leading to secure the goal of 10 billion EUR in common purchases by 2030.

4. Compliance and verification

To avoid greenwashing practices and ensure compliance with competition rules, the Alliance will have to follow several procurement guidelines outlined by the Commission, which will rely on:

Click here for more info about the call

For any questions regarding this call, please contact:
European Commission — DG Environment
Unit B.1 — Bioeconomy and Sustainable Materials
Email: env-bioeconomy-strategy@ec.europa.eu