Jan 20 2011
The BioPreferredSM Certified Biobased Product label will help consumers identify and purchase products made from renewable resources.
The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today thanked Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and the USDA BioPreferred Program for finalizing the rules for the certification and labeling program. Under the voluntary labeling program, biobased product manufacturers and distributors will be able to affix a USDA Certified Biobased Product label on qualifying products.
Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section, said, “Biobased products are being developed to satisfy growing consumer demand for renewable green products and meet the most important environmental goals, including reducing use of petroleum and other non-renewable resources, reducing waste in landfills, and lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Many biobased products are already cost competitive with fossil resource-based materials. With independent testing, consumers can be confident that products bearing the certified biobased label are made with renewable resources.
“The biobased product sector can be an important area for economic growth and new jobs. In all, as many as 5,100 new products from 562 companies already identified by the BioPreferred program could be eligible for the labeling and certification program.”
According to a recent World Economic Forum report, using renewable biomass for biofuels, energy, and chemicals has the potential to contribute upwards of $230 billion to the global economy by 2020. BIO’s white paper, Biobased Chemicals and Products: A New Driver of U.S. Economic Development and Green Jobs, shows that projected growth in the biobased chemicals and plastics industry, which can be used in BioPreferred products, can create tens of thousands of jobs.