A bioeconomy for Michigan means reinvigorating the state's existing economy by connecting our strengths in agriculture, forestry and natural resources with our traditional strength in the manufacturing and industrial sectors.
Biomass, biosolids and feedstock are all terms that refer to the plant-based raw materials refined into replacements for petroleum and other fossil fuels in chemicals, energy and materials such as plastics.
The thousands of jobs that can arise span many sectors of the workforce, including research, agriculture, forestry, equipment and product manufacturing, education and training, business management, marketing, sales and distribution.
This is much bigger than just ethanol. While there is active work going on in Michigan surrounding ethanol, a bioeconomy for this state centers on the broad diversity of food and plant crops across Michigan that can be processed into industrial materials, fuels and chemicals.
MSU has historic strengths in plant science and chemistry and deep connections with the manufacturing and agricultural industries. With NextEnergy's close relationship with Wayne State University and the University of Michigan's track record in science, technology and engineering, especially related to the automobile industry, Michigan has a wealth of collective assets at its key research universities to achieve this goal. We are committed to working with industry, government, and other institutions, including community colleges across the state, to help leverage these assets for Michigan's economic prosperity.
A farmer would think of crops not purely as a food product but would consider all potential uses of the plant. This approach might lead the farmer to plant a grass crop instead of a food crop and realize a much higher price per acre than the food commodity.
Biotechnology is part of a bio-based economy, but the term biotech has come to be understood most often in terms of medical research. In the case of a bio-based economy for Michigan, biotechnology uses the tools of modern science—molecular biology, chemistry, engineering, genomics, genetics—to create bio-based replacements for petroleum and other fossil fuels from renewable carbon-based products, usually plants.
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