How Can We Use Forest Resources Without Waste – and Why Does It Matter to You?

Imagine cooking a meal – you use vegetables, but throw away the peels and leaves. Wouldn’t it be great if these leftovers could be turned into valuable products? The same applies to the Latvian forestry sector – currently, many valuable resources left over after logging are not fully utilized.

The project "Implementing a Full Circular Economy for the Innovative Utilization of Forest Resources in the Bioeconomy" aims to change this by developing new technologies that enable the efficient use of needles, bark, and other by-products of coniferous wood processing.

How Will It Work?
Just as food waste can be used for compost or broth at home, this project develops solutions to convert forest residues into new, high-value products:

  • For healthcare and pharmaceuticals – extraction of bioactive compounds such as chlorophyll, terpenoids, and polyprenols from needles;
  • For energy – production of pelletized biofuel from wood processing residues;
  • For sustainable construction – eco-friendly thermal insulation materials for buildings;
  • For agriculture – natural soil improvement agents combining wood processing by-products with sapropel.

 

Why Is This Important?
Implementing a full circular economy in the forestry sector means reducing waste, creating new products, and making more efficient use of Latvia’s natural resources. This transition contributes to a greener economy and opens up new business opportunities in sustainable innovation.

Project Partners: SIA “BF-ESSE”, Latvian State Institute of Wood Chemistry, the Latvian State forest research institute "Silava", Institute of Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment “BIOR”, SIA “Grantiņi-1”, and SIA “Projektu birojs”.

On LSIWC side, the project is being implemented by our brilliant scientists PhD Anna Andersone, Dr.sc.ing. Sarmite Janceva, Dr.sc.ing. Uldis Spulle and Mg.biol. Natālija Zaharova.

Learn more about the project and its progress: here.

Our future depends on how we use resources today!