Dynamics and trends in the development of the bioeconomy sectors in Bulgaria

The bioeconomy has significant potential to address global challenges in the transition of economies towards sustainability. The aim of this paper is to explore the changes, trends and challenges in the development of the bioeconomy, allowing the derivation of potential prospects for future development. It explores the concept of bioeconomy development in the European Union and the main policy instruments. The relationship of the bioeconomy to other sustainability concepts is identified. The contribution of the bioeconomy sectors in Bulgaria in terms of number of employees, value added and turnover is assessed. Certain structural changes have been observed, as the dependence of the bioeconomy on the primary sectors (mainly agriculture) is decreasing and the importance of the secondary sectors is increasing, especially for the production of biofuels and bioenergy, bio-chemicals, etc.