Collaborative Ecosystem

Adhesives and coatings are an integral part of consumer products used in our daily lives. Today, most adhesives and coatings on the market are formulated using fossil-based and harmful chemicals, which conflicts with the EU-level goal of reducing our dependency on non-renewable resources and protecting the health and well-being of citizens and the environment.

The Circular Bio-Based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) funded SuperBark project will exploit natural components in softwood bark, a major side stream of the forest industry. The goal is to develop ≥ 95% bio based adhesives and coatings for industries including construction, packaging, furniture, and transportation that comply with the functional, safety, and sustainability standards required by the industry and consumers.
Throughout SuperBark, the partners will evaluate the safety, sustainability, technical as well as economic performance of the adhesives and coatings to initiate further R&D actions towards commercialization of the developed processes and products, which will reduce the demand for fossil-based, hazardous chemicals and polymers typically used in adhesive and coating products today.
SuperBark will bring together experts from different disciplines and thus contribute to the CBE JU specific objective of increasing the intensity of cross-disciplinary research and innovation activities to support the acceleration of innovation processes and development of bio-based solutions.

CUBIC presents an innovative solution to improve the sustainability and circularity of complex products made of high-tech advanced multi-material composite structures, by developing novel biomaterials. The ultimate goal is to develop 100% circular by design biobased and recyclable thermoplastic and thermoset B2B intermediate products.

Background

The EU is the world’s top producer, consumer, and exporter of olive oil, accounting for around 67% of global output. Behind this success lies a growing environmental and economic challenge: managing the large volumes of waste generated during olive oil production. This waste—known as olive mill waste (OMW)—includes pomace, stones, and leaves, with up to 9.6 million tons produced annually in Europe alone. Current disposal methods, such as composting, landfilling, and specialized treatment, are costly and can account for up to 10% of total production expenses.

Improper waste management can lead to soil degradation, water pollution, and harm to local ecosystems due to the high content of organic compounds and heavy metals in OMW. With rising pressure to reduce chemical use and improve sustainability, OLinWASTE aims to create innovative solutions to turn this waste into valuable bioproducts—transforming a costly problem into a profitable opportunity.

Objectives

• Enhance the circularity and environmental sustainability of oil mills and biodigesters through an industrial symbiosis capable of transforming waste into biopesticides and biofertilizers
• Develop new processes to produce sustainable bio-based packaging
• Develop novel routes to tackle exhaust emissions from an olive mill waste-fed biorefinery by recovering heat and reducing noises and odours emitted to the environment
• Create a system digital twin and an online platform for multi-criteria assessment of the designated multi-component waste treatment system
• Transversal assessments of safety, environmental impacts, economics, and circularity in an olive mill waste-based biorefinery
• Spread a circular and sustainable culture in the olive mill sector, almost absent in the European and worldwide contexts