Strategic navigation of world-leading biorefineries and Mexico's policy landscape: A gateway to a sustainable circular bioeconomy

This study presents a novel comprehensive approach to developing a transformative bioeconomy policy. It leverages novel insights from global commercial biorefineries, Mexico's existing legislation framework, and expert workshops to illustrate the practical implementation of bioeconomy in Mexico. Mexico, with its abundance of bio-based resources including various waste materials, holds significant potential for a sustainable circular bioeconomy. However, the current regulatory landscape, primarily focused on agroecology and bioenergy, lacks a comprehensive sustainable development strategy with integrated biorefineries for a bioeconomy. To address this gap, the study examines the most effective biorefinery systems, incorporating high-value productions with bioenergy cogeneration and learning from leading international biorefineries. These global counterparts have successfully diversified their biomass sources and fostered inclusive growth by engaging local farming communities. The analysis reveals that the predominant products of biorefineries include chemicals such as building blocks, pharmaceuticals, and nutraceuticals, followed by materials like polymers and fibers, all contributing significantly to the global bio-based market. The study emphasizes the importance of product selectivity, quality, and scalability in introducing innovative, high-value products. Through a specialized workshop, the study underscores the importance of bio-based products in enhancing local livelihoods, entrepreneurship, and education. It advocates for policy reforms to attract investments, transform existing energy systems into biorefineries, and reduce air pollution. Conclusively, the proposed bioeconomy policy is a significant step towards aligning Mexico with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, representing a critical advancement in bioeconomy policy development.