Three Things You Need to Know About Bioproducts

 The world of bioproducts is huge and encompasses many different categories for our items. I would say most people don't know about bioproducts and that some of the things they use daily would be considered bioproducts. There are a few very important things that everyone needs to know about bioproducts. These include the pathways to making them, the actual products that we use, and whether these products are worth it. Learning about these factors may influence the products that you use in your everyday life and maybe change your habits for the better. 

I think that it is important to start with how these products are made. There are many different techniques for making these products depending on the outcome that the consumer is looking for. The main ones as seen in the chart are thermochemical conversion, biochemical conversion, and mechanical conversion (lesson 21). Within each of these categories, there are more broken-down techniques to get the product that you want. For example, fermentation can be used to produce ethanol and many food products like beer, citric acid, or sauerkraut (lesson 19). Whereas combustion, a part of thermochemical conversion, is used to make fire. Due to all these different pathways to make the bioproducts, we end up with a substantial amount of products that we can use. 


How many different products can be made with bioproducts? I feel like the answer should be unlimited. There are thousands of bioproducts on the market and underdevelopment there are endless possibilities. The products can range from a water bottle made out of plants to biofuel such as ethanol. The upcoming products that are being introduced to the consumers could be very revolutionary. One of these products is called transparent wood. This product is chemically changed to remove the lignin from it and then putting resin into the wood. This would have the ability to replace windows in buildings and fully use wood for construction (Lesson 22). 


Finally, you may be wondering if these products are worth it. Are there certified advantages to using these products? What about the disadvantages? Bioproducts can help with the environmental concerns of their alternative counterpart. These products may be biodegradable, bio-compatible, and environmentally friendly (Factsheet: Bioproducts). This in the long run would help to sustain an environmental future. Bio products are also easier to get domestically and then would help support local production. However, even though these products seem great economically they are not the best option. For most products, it is substantially cheaper to produce the original option. 


In conclusion, there are many things to know about bioproducts. As they continue to develop and grow into a bigger industry there will be more and more to learn about them.  They have only just started to develop and make their way into our economy. Learning more about the bioproducts that are available to us and how they are made may have opened your eyes to their possibilities. I believe they are such a great use of resources and hopefully will be used to their maximum ability in the future.



 


Works cited: 

Lesson 21, Other Pathways to Products, BBE 1002, UMN

Lesson 19, Fermentation, BBE 1002, UMN

Factsheet: Bioproducts 

https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Bioproduct_Factsheet.pdf 

Lesson 22, Other Biobased Products, BBE 1002, UMN

Top 10 Most Impactful Bioproducts 

https://ecotech.substack.com/p/top-10-most-impactful-bioproducts

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