Press Release: European Commission and Belgian Presidency hold major conference on a sustainable Bio-economy and exhibition including the first bio-based tyre

The European Commission, together with the Belgian Presidency, holds tomorrow (14 September) in Brussels (The Square, rue Mont des Arts) a conference on building a Knowledge based BioEconomy. The European bio-economy is estimated to be worth over € 2 trillion, employing around 22 million people, and the prospects for further growth are promising. Senior scientists, stakeholders and European and national policy makers will take part in the conference. Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn will, along with other leading personalities, give a press conference at the venue at 11h00. Partly based on the conference results, the European Commission will launch this autumn an open consultation on the "EU strategy towards a sustainable bio-based economy 2020", which will lead into a policy Communication in the second half of next year. Alongside the conference, an exhibition of selected bio-based products will range from food and feed to the prototype of the first bio-based tyre, a collaboration between European and US industry. The Commission will also host the International Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy Forum on 15 September 2010.