2023 EU Just Transition Fund Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiative

The EU Just Transition Fund Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiative is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the EU Just Transition Fund.

For the 2023 funding Call under this initiative, the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine invited eligible applicants to submit proposals for ‘Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiatives’ as part of the EU Just Transition Fund for Ireland.

The €10 million funding opportunity was designed to pilot and demonstrate the bioeconomy in action within the Just Transition Fund Territory.

The funding offered the opportunity to support close collaboration between stakeholders along the entire bio-based value chain, including SMEs, research performing organisations, universities, local authorities, clusters, primary producers, bioprocessing industries, and consumer brands.

It aimed to support bioeconomy innovation at the Just Transition Fund territorial level and will seek the active involvement of local actors (e.g., NGOs, local and regional authorities, community, and local action groups) alongside the bio-based industries.

Applicants seeking grant-aid could apply for funding under the thematic areas set out in the Call Specification.

Applications were to be submitted online to the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine, with the call opening for applications on 16 August 2023, and closing on 13 October 2023 at 12pm noon.

This Call aimed to support the development of two Bioeconomy piloting and demonstration projects in the 'Designated Territories' of the midlands, which includes the counties of Laois, Longford, Offaly, Westmeath, Roscommon, and the Municipal Districts of Ballinasloe (Co. Galway), Athy and Clane-Maynooth (Co. Kildare), and Carrick-on-Suir and Thurles (Co. Tipperary).

Two projects were awarded funding under the 2023 EU Just Transition Fund Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiative in October 2024.

Funding of €5 million was awarded to ‘The Lisheen Bioeconomy Scaleup Initiative (BioScaleUp)’. Led by Tipperary County Council, it will demonstrate six innovative technologies at the national pilot biorefinery facility at the National Bioeconomy Campus, Lisheen Thurles, Co. Tipperary. The initiative will see collaboration between Universities, the Irish Bioeconomy Foundation, and dairy and forestry bioprocessing industries. It will include scaling up and demonstrating the conversion of dairy side streams, food waste and wood processing wastewater into biobased chemicals, materials and other valuable biobased products and services. These could eventually be used as food ingredients or as biobased ingredients in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical sectors, displacing fossil-based ingredients for example.

A further €5 million was awarded to ‘The Mount Lucas Circular Bioeconomy Aquaculture Initiative (Circular IMTA)’, which is led by the Technological University of Shannon. It will demonstrate the production of new feeds and food ingredients from cultivated-duckweed and macroalgae at scale, using agri-food waste streams produced at a circular peatland integrated aquaculture site at Mount Lucas in Co. Offaly.

Both projects will also include significant training and upskilling opportunities in both facilities across a range of scientific, technical, and engineering, facilitation, business and finance areas related to biorefinery and biomanufacturing.

Click here to view the full Press Release on the €10 million announcement by Ministers.

Information session for applicants

On Monday 28 August 2023, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine held an online information session for prospective applicants to the 2023 Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiative. A recording of this session can be viewed below.

DAFM officials gave a brief overview on the background and policy setting of the bioeconomy, before offering an in-depth look at the 2023 Bioeconomy Demonstration Initiative and the important details for prospective applicants. Terry Connolly from the Eastern and Midland Regional Assembly presented on the EU Just Transition Fund. The presentation slides from the information session can be viewed below.

• Full press release www.gov.ie/en/press-release/19a36-ministers-mcconalogue-heydon-and-hackett-announces-new-10-million-bioeconomy-funding-initiative/

• Additional information on the managing authority’s page: emra.ie/bioeconomy-demonstration-initiative-scheme/