Modern Bioeconomy Measurement in the Green Economy Paradigm: Four Pillars of Alternative Bioeconomy

Abstract

The bioeconomic transition is not always seen as sustainable and environmentally friendly. In particular, it may contribute to increased global inequality, affect economic and social stability, and increase dependence on innovative biotechnologies that may be unaffordable for many countries. These issues are causing considerable controversy in the scientific community and require rethinking the balance between technology, ecology, and social justice. The motivation for this study was the need to provide a critical analysis of modern scientific production in order to find systematic evidence in the debate of the scientific community on bioeconomy. Therefore, we conducted a bibliometric analysis of scientific publications from 2013 to 2023 from the Scopus database and identified scientific trajectories that contribute to the elimination of contradictions and debates around rethinking the balance of technological and environmental friendliness in the bioeconomic concept. The analysis of the publications has shown that the bioeconomy is actively integrated with the concepts of green and circular economies, but its impact on sustainability remains controversial. In particular, bioeconomic approaches can lead to environmental and social problems, such as depletion of bioresources and unequal access to biotechnology. Accordingly, four pillars of the alternative bioeconomy have been identified that can contribute to a more balanced development of this area.