What’s new in biomass supply chain optimization? current trends and insights

Biomass has emerged as a pivotal new resource that could alleviate dependence on fossil resources and support the ecological transition by benefiting local communities. There has been an expanding literature on the subject for the past two decades. The focus of this literature is primarily on the organization and optimization of the biomass supply chain (BSC), which is the key component in providing profitable and sustainable valorized goods from biomass. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the present state of known research gaps, identify research gaps in BSC design by including economic considerations, and propose new research orientations on the subject that rely on more multidisciplinary approaches. We found three main understudied gaps. The majority of papers still only consider the strategic and tactical decision levels, excluding the operational decision level. Therefore, there are still opportunities to improve the currently accepted BSC design. The demand, as part of the supply chain, appears to be understudied. In the reviewed literature, the demand is treated as a parameter, and is perfectly met by the production, without consideration for pricing, surplus, or shortage. The other gap found is that most of the models considered in this review describe a BSC in autarky, and few take into account importations either of additional biomass or of bioproduct in their studied case, or the potential exportation of surplus. Consequently, closing these gaps in biomass supply design and optimization would facilitate the integration of BSC modeling into broader economic models.