A focal point for the community to support ambitious scaling up of the bioenergy industry and scale of planting

Demonstration and knowledge-sharing hubs to showcase best practice and innovations in land-based biomass feedstock production

Robust, independent information on biomass feedstock performance, agronomy, economics and environmental benefits

British Renewable Energy Awards

Pioneer Winner 2023

Biomass Connect has been named the winner of the prestigious Pioneer Award at the British Renewable Energy Awards.

Building a UK wide, cohesive, regionally based community to develop and operate the platform

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We produce a newsletter and other regular communication to share relevant information and the Platform’s activities.

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Sustainable Markets: Accelerating Finance for Good

Location: Geneva

RSB ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2024 | 11 DECEMBER | CERN, GENEVA This year’s event will serve as a dynamic platform for fostering confidence in sustainable bioeconomy solutions, ensuring their long-term viability, […]

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Welsh Government Launches Agricultural Diversification and Horticulture Scheme with Support for Biomass Crop Growers

The Welsh Government has launched a new Agricultural Diversification and Horticulture Scheme designed to support farmers and land managers in diversifying their agricultural activities. This initiative provides significant opportunities for those interested […]

Read more

Demonstrator Hub Updates – November 2024

The Biomass Connect Demonstrator Hubs across the UK have shown varying progress as winter approaches, reflecting both the resilience of certain crops and regional differences in weather conditions. Across the sites, senescence is a dominant theme, with many perennial crops entering dormancy while some continue to show growth in favourable conditions.

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Presentation: Erisa Senerdem, Unlocking Agricultural Biomass Potential: Lessons from Forestry and Global Market Insights.

In this presentation given at the Biomass Connect Showcase on 8th November 2024, Erisa Senerdem brings valuable insights from global biomass markets for agricultural residues like sugarcane bagasse and palm kernel shells. Particularly pertinent were comments about the importance of product specification, seasonality of supply, price volatility and matching to end user technologies.

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Biomass Connect: Biomass Innovation and Information Platform

Biomass is the organic material from living organisms. In the context of Biomass Connect, the term refers to non-food crops where the whole aboveground plant biomass is harvested and used for a range of purposes including heat and electricity, fuel for transport, platform chemicals, and a range of construction, packaging, and cosmetic applications. Biomass crops are fast-growing, with a high potential energy content or calorific value.

Biomass Connect is a demonstration and knowledge-sharing initiative to showcase best practice and innovations in land-based biomass feedstock production. We seek to share knowledge and experiences that can make a significant contribution to agricultural, environmental and bioenergy policy development, practical on-farm advances, and overall growth in the UK’s biomass sector. The project also compares crop/variety performance in regions across the UK and demonstrates innovations which have the potential to maximise their economic and environmental benefits.

Biomass Connect Showcase Event

showcase event

Harnessing Innovation, the Future of Biomass

It was fantastic to see so many of you at the Biomass Connect Showcase event! Thanks to everyone who came, contributed, and made it such a valuable experience.

The event showcased the latest innovations in biomass production and processing emerging from the Biomass Feedstocks Innovation Programme and included presentations and practical workshop sessions from a wide range of speakers from all areas of the biomass industry. The robot was of course a big hit too.

We’re currently going through all of the presentations, audio files, photos and videos from the event and hope to bring you as much of it as we can via the website over the coming weeks.

The full programme and list of speakers are available on the Showcase Event page, we’ll be adding to this with content from the event soon. Stay tuned for updates.

 

Eight demonstration hubs are located across the UK, in Ceredigion, South Ayrshire, Buckinghamshire, Devon, Edinburgh, County Down, Northumberland and Yorkshire.

Biomass Feedstocks Innovation

£32m of funding has enabled 12 organisations, including 7 small and medium-sized enterprises, to deliver commercially viable innovations in biomass production.

Crop information

Biomass crops vary greatly in size and form, ranging from towering 30-meter trees to fast-growing grasses. While they typically demand limited inputs and minimal cultivation, specific requirements vary among different crops, soil types, and climates (the impacts of different soils and regional climate variations is one reason we have our demonstrator hub sites distributed around the UK). Explore the Crop Information section of this website for comprehensive details on biomass crops featured in the Biomass Connect trials, as well as other promising candidates. 

What’s On

Check out our diary of events and demos.

11
Dec
RSB ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2024 | 11 DECEMBER | CERN, GENEVA This year’s event will serve as a dynamic platform for fostering confidence in sustainable bioeconomy solutions, ensuring their long-term viability, […]
11
Dec
CHCx3 Biomass Crops Webinar – 11th December 24 11th December 2024, 12:30 – 13:30 Diverse swards and herbal ley webinar Webinar that will explore which herbal ley species grow best […]
12
Dec
This webinar will focus mainly on Short Rotation Coppice willow and Miscanthus crops but many of the issues addressed will be familiar to any perennial biomass crop. Our very knowledgeable panel have dealt with most of these issues over the years so have first hand experience of how to find a solution whenever reality throws a curveball.
What's On
News from the Biomass World
November 27, 2024
Welsh Government Launches Agricultural Diversification and Horticulture Scheme with Support for Biomass Crop Growers
The Welsh Government has launched a new Agricultural Diversification and Horticulture Scheme designed to support farmers and land managers in diversifying their agricultural activities. This initiative provides significant opportunities for those interested […]
Read more
Demonstrator Hub Updates
December 05, 2024
Demonstrator Hub Updates – November 2024
The Biomass Connect Demonstrator Hubs across the UK have shown varying progress as winter approaches, reflecting both the resilience of certain crops and regional differences in weather conditions. Across the sites, senescence is a dominant theme, with many perennial crops entering dormancy while some continue to show growth in favourable conditions.
Read more
News
November 29, 2024
A successful event for the Biomass Connect Team at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair
The Royal Welsh Winter Fair proved to be a success for the Biomass Connect Team, who spent two busy days engaging with visitors intrigued by the diverse display of biomass grasses and trees showcased as part of the project. The event highlighted the growing enthusiasm in Wales for biomass crops as a means to bolster farm resilience and environmental sustainability in our targets for Net Zero
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News
November 28, 2024
Biomass Connect Showcase Event – Harnessing Innovation, the Future of Biomass
The dust has finally settled after the Biomass Connect Showcase event in Warwick earlier this month. It was a busy and rewarding few days, filled with innovation, networking, and plenty of inspiration for what lies ahead in biomass.
Read more