Bill would boost bio-based manufacturers
Bio-based products currently have 4 percent of the market in the plastic and chemical industries, but that could grow to more than 20 percent by 2025.
Reducing the United States’ dependence on oil not only requires the development of alternative fuels but finding substitutes for oil that’s used to make everything from plastics to soap.
Bio-based manufacturers are ready to fill this role, but they want help from the federal government. They’re supporting legislation introduced by Senate Agricultural Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., that would make it easier for bio-based manufacturers to obtain capital and commercialize their innovations. The bill also would strengthen a program that requires federal agencies to purchase bio-based products and encourages consumers to do the same.
Bio-based products currently have 4 percent of the market in the plastic and chemical industries, but that could grow to more than 20 percent by 2025 with more support from the federal government, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Stabenow’s bill would help bio-based manufacturers create “tens of thousands of new jobs” over the next five years, said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of the Biotechnology Industry Association.
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