Resources
- 2015 State of the Biochar Industry
- 2014 State of the Biochar Industry
- 2013 State of the Biochar Industry
- An Introduction to Biochar Technology and Products Available in China, April 2015, Center of Biochar and Green Agriculture Nanjing Agricultural University
- The Pyrolysis 1000, 2016. Prepared by: Gerald Kutney of Sixth Element Sustainable Management
- Getting the Biochar Industry Up To Speed: What can we learn from the Pellet Business? By: Dr Jerry Whitfield
- Biochar Feasibility Study: Exploring the Environmental, Social and Economic Use of a Biochar Business in the Methow Valley; By: Mike Baranick, David McElwee, and Maria Zazycki.
- Planting Empowerment Sustainable Forestry Investments: Analysis of the potential for bio-char as a revenue source for Planting Empowerment; By: MIT Sloan Entrepreneurs in International Development (SEID) Club
The State of the Biochar Industry Report
Successful commercialization of biochar systems will take many different pathways depending on desired outcomes, local conditions and national and international policies. IBI is tracking industry trends and developments through the annual State of the Industry report series. Started in 2013 with the first 2013 State of the Biochar Industry, IBI conducts an annual survey of those working in the industry and combines those responses with internet research and outreach to create a full view of the current state of the industry. IBI released the 2014 State of the Biochar Industry in May, 2015. The 2015 State of the Biochar Industry was issued in 2016.
Note: According to an August 2014 press release, Transparency Market Research (TMR) is offering for $4795 a report on the biochar industry (Global Biochar Market – Industry Analysis, Market Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2014-2020, published Aug 2014). IBI had no involvement in the production of the TMR report, although TMR included in its report information and charts from the IBI’s 2013 State of the Biochar Industry Report without IBI’s knowledge. If you have further questions, please contact info@biochar-international.org.
Announcing the Launch of the IBI Industry Committee
In November 2014, IBI hosted the inaugural virtual meeting of the newly formed IBI Industry Committee. The objective of the committee is to help IBI prioritize real-time information on challenges and impediments to the biochar industry in such areas as regulations, policies, and markets, at the local, national, and international levels. Additionally, the committee will collaborate with IBI and our stakeholders to assist in the development and coordination of solutions and resources to overcome these challenges and aid in the growth and development of a sustainable and commercially viable biochar industry.
The committee will meet on a bi-monthly basis and will develop ideas and a work plan over an 18-month time horizon. We would like to sincerely thank the committee members for their voluntary efforts and contributions; members include: Albert Bennett, ICM Inc, USA; Kathleen Draper, Ithaka Institute for Carbon Intelligence, USA; Don Harfield, Alberta Innovates, Canada; Stephen Joseph, University of New South Wales, Australia; Jonah Levine, The Biochar Company, USA; Simon Manley, Carbon Gold, UK; Tom Miles, TRM Consulting, USA; Fabian Stenzel, Fraunhofer UMSICHT, Germany; and Hailong Wang, Zhejiang A & F University, China.
The table below illustrates a number of different biochar system pathways and identifies some of the opportunities and obstacles that will impact commercialization.