Intergraf joins the cross-sectoral Coalition supporting Circular Choices for the EU’s Bioeconomy to combine the advocacy efforts with partners that represent forest-based industries. Together, the Coalition represents a sustainable, circular, and integrated European value chain which will be crucial to enable the EU to reach the net zero goal by 2050. The Coalition has already announced its 2030 policy recommendations.

Among other policy recommendations, the Coalition is urging the EU to prioritize sustainability and a circular economy by ensuring a strong and growing supply of renewable wood and fibre. This can be achieved by developing legislation that facilitates the transition to sustainable wood-based products and bioenergy while assessing the impact of legislation affecting raw material supply. The EU legislators are advised to also recognize the value of wood as a precious resource, acknowledge the contribution of renewable materials to climate neutrality, and improve the use of raw materials by applying the cascading principle. Finally, policymakers are urged to support a functional internal market for wood and fibre-based products through recycling systems at scale.

In order to make the EU more self-sufficient and able to withstand global challenges, the bioeconomy must be integrated into the European value chain, with a flexible and integrated single market for the industry to remain competitive. This also means the EU must defend its trade and commercial interests externally. To achieve this, the Coalition recommends establishing a wood and fibre-based Industrial Alliance to improve material efficiency and secure fair competition on global markets.

The EU should recognise the contributions of Coalition stakeholders to the EU’s circular bioeconomy and ensure that wood, fibre-based and paper-based products are regulated as biobased, sustainable and complementary recycled solutions to reusable options.