Environmental Assessment of the Transition from Conventional Sugar Production to Biorefinery Production as a Sustainable Strategy to Achieve a Circular Bioeconomy

This study aimed to investigate and compare the environmental damage of raw sugar production in the cultivation and industry of Khuzestan province under a conventional linear framework and a circular bioeconomy perspective. The purpose of transition from production systems under linear economy to circular bioeconomy is to eliminate waste, increase the efficiency of materials and energy, and the production of biodiversity products to increase the sustainability of production systems, including food production systems. This study showed that the production per ton of raw sugar under the framework of linear economy leads to a loss of 167.41 Pt, which production and combustion of natural gas in sugarcane processing have the largest share in causing this damage. In comparison, the results of this study showed that the transition from a linear economy to a circular bioeconomy in which molasses and bagasse as the two major wastes of the sugar industry are converted into alcohol and fuel, respectively, resulted in a 193% reduction in total environmental damage. This result emphasizes that sugar production under the circular bioeconomy not only is a viable solution for existing waste management but also significantly reduces the environmental damage caused by sugarcane production and processing.