JRC policy brief finds technology readiness and high cost remain key barriers to wide bio-based plastics adoption
ISPRA, Italy — The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has published a policy brief examining the role of bio-based plastics in a sustainable and circular bioeconomy, concluding that technology readiness and high production costs remain the primary barriers preventing wider adoption across Europe and globally.
The analysis, published on 3 March 2026, finds that bio-based plastics currently account for just 0.5% of global plastics production. Without targeted policy intervention, the JRC projects this share will barely reach 1% by 2030, even as total plastics demand continues to surge.
The brief assesses technology readiness levels (TRL) across major bio-based polymer pathways on a scale of 1 to 9, where 9 represents full commercial deployment. Drop-in bio-based equivalents such as bio-PE and bio-PP have reached TRL 9, meaning they are technically mature and commercially available. Polylactic acid (PLA) and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) sit at TRL 7–8, with established production but ongoing scale-up challenges. More advanced routes — including novel bio-based monomers and chemical recycling pathways — remain at lower readiness levels and require further research and development investment.
Production costs for bio-based plastics remain 1.5 to 2 times higher than their fossil-based counterparts, driven primarily by feedstock prices and a lack of economies of scale. The JRC identifies feedstock sustainability, cost competitiveness, technological maturity and end-of-life infrastructure as four interconnected challenges that must be addressed simultaneously for the sector to scale.
The European policy landscape is evolving to support this transition. The Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) sets recycled content targets for 2027 and 2030, while the 2025 Bioeconomy Strategy and Horizon Europe funding programmes aim to de-risk innovation and support demand-side measures. However, the JRC notes that supply-side incentives alone are insufficient without complementary market-pull mechanisms such as mandatory recycled and bio-based content requirements, green public procurement, and clearer labelling and certification schemes.
European Bioplastics has called for stronger demand-side policies to complement existing supply-side support, citing consumer acceptance rates of 73% for eco-friendly products as evidence of latent market demand. Industry stakeholders emphasize that many bio-based plastics are technically ready for deployment but remain stuck at sub-commercial volumes because fossil-based incumbents benefit from decades of infrastructure optimisation and entrenched supply chains.
The policy brief concludes that a coordinated approach — combining continued R&D support for lower-TRL pathways, targeted subsidies or tax incentives to bridge the cost gap for near-commercial technologies, and regulatory measures that create guaranteed markets — is necessary if bio-based plastics are to make a meaningful contribution to the EU’s circular economy and climate neutrality objectives.
About the Joint Research Centre
The Joint Research Centre is the European Commission’s science and knowledge service, providing independent scientific advice and support to EU policy.
Source: Joint Research Centre policy brief “Bio-based plastics in a sustainable and circular bioeconomy” (JRC147061 / JRC145443), published 3 March 2026.