Government Programs and Other Resources Related to Bioplastics
Bioproducts
- Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Biomass Research Centers and Utilization Centers: ARS is vertically integrated to 1) ensure dependable feedstock supplies via the four Biomass Research Centers and 2) evaluate the conversions of agricultural feedstocks in the four Utilization Centers:—Eastern Regional Research Center (ERRC), National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (NCAUR), Southern Regional Research Center (SRRC), and Western Regional Research Center (WRRC). These centers collaboratively work together to support the complete bioeconomy supply chain by enhancing biomass varieties, improving production systems and bioprocessing, boosting performance of biobased products including biofuels, and enabling higher value uses of co-products.
- Agile BioFoundry and Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit: These early applied R&D facilities, supported by DOE and NSF, are available to industry and academia at reduced costs.
- Bioeconomy and Advanced Biotechnology Meta-Program: NSF supports biotechnology research at all biological scales and across all scientific disciplines. The Directorate for Biological Sciences supports fundamental research that can be translated into solutions for societal problems while advancing biotechnology and the bioeconomy, including the Plant Genome Research program and the Molecular Foundations for Biotechnology solicitation. The Directorate for Engineering supports fundamental and translational engineering research that utilizes biotechnology to develop, accelerate, and support the bioeconomy. The Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships harnesses the nation's vast and diverse talent pool to advance critical and emerging technologies, address pressing societal and economic challenges and accelerate the translation of research results from lab to market and society.
- BioPreferred Program: Managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the goal of the BioPreferred Program is to increase the purchase and use of biobased products. The BioPreferred Program was created by the 2002 Farm Bill and reauthorized and expanded as part of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill). The Program's purpose is to spur economic development, create new jobs and provide new markets for farm commodities. The increased development, purchase, and use of biobased products reduces our nation's reliance on petroleum, increases the use of renewable agricultural resources, and contributes to reducing adverse environmental and health impacts.
- Bio-Optimized Technologies to keep Thermoplastics out of Landfills and the Environment (BOTTLE) consortium: BOTTLE conducts high-impact research and development to change the way we recycle. BOTTLE efforts include the development of improved catalytic and biocatalytic recycling strategies (such as the technology used by EsterCycle, a startup that spun-off from BOTTLE research) to break down today's plastics into chemical building blocks for manufacturing circular polymers and designing tomorrow's plastics to be recyclable-by-design. Supported by the DOE's Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) and Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO). BOTTLE is led by experts from multiple partner national laboratories and universities with demonstrated experience in process development and integration, chemical catalysis, biocatalysis, material science, separations, modeling, economic analysis, and sustainability assessment.
- DOE Office of Science: The Office of Science is the lead Federal agency supporting scientific research for energy. Two program offices in the Office of Science support research relevant to bioproducts. The Office of Biological and Environmental Research provides basic genome-enabled research on plants and microorganisms to enable biofuels production from renewable plant biomass and CO2. The Office of Basic Energy Sciences supports fundamental chemical, materials sciences, and biochemical research that can address scientific challenges, such as catalysis, biocatalysis, separation science and biomolecule synthesis, relevant to biofuels and bioproducts production.
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA): NIFA provides leadership and funding for programs that advance agriculture-related sciences. NIFA invests in and supports initiatives that ensure the long-term viability of agriculture. NIFA applies an integrated approach to ensure that groundbreaking discoveries in agriculture-related sciences and technologies reach the people who can put them into practice.
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- AFRI Foundational and Applied Science Program: The AFRI Foundational and Applied Science Program supports grants in six AFRI priority areas to advance knowledge in both fundamental and applied sciences important to agriculture. The six priority areas are: Plant Health and Production and Plant Products; Animal Health and Production and Animal Products; Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health; Bioenergy, Natural Resources, and Environment; Agriculture Systems and Technology; and Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities. Also see related webinar.
- Bioeconomy, Bioenergy, and Bioproducts Programs: USDA’s program aims to facilitate the development of sustainable regional production systems for biofuels, biopower, and biobased products, for increased rural economic vitality and national energy security through partnerships and collaboration.
- Bioproduct Pilot Program: USDA seeks to study the benefits of using agricultural materials to manufacture construction and consumer products. With funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, USDA is partnering with institutions to support the scale-up of sustainable bioproduct manufacturing, with the goal of providing a low-cost alternative to conventional products.
- Biorefining and Biomanufacturing Webinar: Webinar and information on funding opportunity for Biorefining and Biomanufacturing that includes bioplastics.
- Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Programs: The USDA SBIR/STTR programs focus on transforming scientific discovery into products and services with commercial potential and/or societal benefit. Unlike fundamental research, the USDA SBIR/STTR programs support small businesses in the creation of innovative, disruptive technologies and enable the application of research advancements from conception into the market. The STTR program aims to foster technology transfer through formal cooperative R&D between small businesses and nonprofit research institutions.
- AFRI general resources: grants application general information, guide, and FAQs, and RFA resources.
- Gateway to find funding data, metrics, and information about research, education, and extension projects that have received grant awards from NIFA. Also see funded projects specifically related to bioplastics:
Infrastructure
- Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program: USDA provides loan guarantees to assist in the development, construction, and retrofitting of new and emerging technologies. These technologies support: advanced biofuels, renewable chemicals and biobased products.
- DOE Loan Program, Innovative Energy and Innovative Supply Chain: DOE’s Loan Program finances projects that deploy new or significantly improved high-impact clean energy technology, including biofuels and bioproducts (Innovative Energy) or that employ new or significantly improved technology in the manufacturing process for a qualifying clean energy technology or manufacture innovative products with an eligible technology end-use (Innovative Supply Chain).
- Rural Business Development Grants: USDA’s program is designed to provide technical assistance and training for small rural businesses.
- Rural Business Investment Program: USDA’s program provides a Rural Business Investment Company (RBIC) license to newly formed developmental capital organizations to help meet the equity capital investment needs in rural communities.
- Wood Products Infrastructure Assistance Grant Program: USDA provides funding to wood processing facilities to improve, establish, retrofit, or expand facilities that purchase and process byproducts from ecosystem restoration projects from Federal or Tribal lands. These facilities are located in areas at risk of unnaturally severe wildfire or insect and disease and are vital to the economic fabric of their communities.
Organic Materials Recycling
- Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling (SWIFR): EPA’s SWIFR grant program, which is funded through Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, provides $275 million from FY22 to FY26. The funding will support improvements to waste management systems, allowing resources to be used more efficiently and reducing the impact on the climate and aims to create a stronger, more resilient, and cost-effective U.S. municipal solid waste recycling system. Eligible projects include development of and/or upgrades to composting facilities or anaerobic digesters to increase capacity for organics recycling, improving wasted food data and more.
- Consumer Recycling Education and Outreach (REO): EPA’s REO grant program, which is funded through Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, provides $75 million from FY22 to FY26 to improve the effectiveness of residential and community recycling and composting programs through public education and outreach. Anaerobic digestion and rendering projects are eligible as well, along with actions to prevent food waste.
Wood
- Community Wood Grant Program: USDA provides grants to install thermal wood energy systems or to build innovative wood product manufacturing facilities. The program places extra emphasis on assisting sawmills in economically challenged areas to retool or add advanced technology.
- Wood Innovations Grants Program: USDA’s program stimulates, expands, and supports U.S. wood products markets and wood energy markets to support the long-term management of National Forest System and other forest lands. National focus areas include mass timber, renewable wood energy, and technological development that supports hazardous fuel reduction and sustainable forest management.
Workforce
- Agriculture and Food Research Initiative – Education and Workforce Development: USDA’s initiative focuses on developing the next generation of research, education, and extension professionals in the food and agricultural sciences. Projects funded through this program area address projected shortfalls of qualified graduates in the agricultural, food, and renewable natural resources sectors of the U.S. economy.
- Bioenergy Workforce Development Strategy: DOE’s program supports a workforce development strategy that enhances bioenergy literacy, improves educational resources, supports workforce training opportunities and increases diversity in the future bioenergy workforce.
- Directorate for STEM Education: NSF supports initiatives that build the STEM-capable U.S. workforce of the future and ensure Americans are prepared to meet evolving workplace demands, through programs and solicitations aimed at supporting learners in elementary and secondary schools, two-year and four-year undergraduate studies, graduate school, and the professional workforce. NSF’s Advanced Technological Education program improves education of technicians for high-technology industries important to the nation’s economy and security, and supports centers like InnovATEBIO, which is working to advance the education of highly skilled technicians for the nation's biotechnology workforce by providing leadership in biotechnology technician education, including support for development and sharing of best practices and emerging technologies in biotechnology workforce development.
- Renewable Resource Extension Act (RREA): USDA’s RREA Program expands the capacity of natural resource extension educators to deliver current, relevant, research-based programs to help forest and rangeland owners, communities, policymakers, and the public make informed decisions in areas of critical importance to the ecological, social, and economic well-being of the nation. It supports educational programs that address the bottlenecks in the utilization of biomass for energy among sectors in the biomass industry.
