Cirbio researchers and their involvement in Biobased Innovations
Dr Theresa Rubhara, a researcher with the CircBio research group at Centre for Applied Bioscience Research (CABR), has been involved in developing the Enable-BIO project. The Enable-BIO project is funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in collaboration with UCD. It aims to remove regulatory barriers in the bioeconomy and provide a roadmap for creating an enabling environment for innovations in agrifood waste bio-based value chains.
→ Funded by Enterprise Ireland
This research will help policy makers develop a coherent regulatory framework through:
→ An inventory of the current waste management regulatory framework
→ International best practices which can be adopted in the Irish context using evidence from case studies.
→ GAP analysis of the regulatory barriers/enablers and recommend actions on how regulation can be adapted to new and innovative technologies that can use by-products and waste.
→ Engage with stakeholders in bio-based industries on the development of an enabling environment for the utilization of agri-food waste for bio-based Innovations.
→ Scalability from small-scale research (1 L) to large-scale production (3,300 L).
→ Enhanced biofunctional pigment production using specific LED lighting technology.
→ Efficient biomass harvesting with flocculation, continuous-flow centrifugation, and simple filtration methods.
→ Producing biomass suitable for isolating cosmetic ingredients, preparing aqua/animal feed, and developing food supplements.
Expected Outcomes:
→ Enable- BIO will bring together policy makers, businesses and other key stakeholders towards development of ideal regulations for the bioeconomy.
→ The proposed framework would foster collaborations, synergies and mutual understanding between different stakeholders in agrifood waste streams.
→ To bring clarity to the bioeconomy regulations, a knowledge transfer workshop will be held to launch the Policy Brief, the EPA research report on regulatory barriers and enablers in agri-food waste bio-based innovations, and the proposed guidelines for the regulatory framework from the systems design thinking workshop.
🔗 Read more about Enable-BIO here: https://www.ucd.ie/enable-bio/