New Zealand researchers are looking to turn forestry waste like bark into high value biopharmaceutical and cosmetics products, with promising health benefits.

Bioeconomy Science Institute – Scion Group’s Sumanth Ranganathan, a biochemical engineer, has been leading a team to investigate better ways to use bark and recently published some of their findings.

Bark from radiata pine makes up to 15% of a tree’s weight but only a fraction of it is utilised - the rest is left in the forest. Getting desirable high value compounds from Pinus radiata depends on the sequence of extraction. Sumanth's team investigated different solvent extraction methods - the extraction method must be matched with the desired compounds. However, according to Ranganathan’s team, no studies have checked if the order of extractions influences the outcome.

The team found that switching the order of solvents used in the extraction process increased the yield by 20%. This result is instrumental in developing a biorefinery in the future.

Why this research matters?

Knowing how to effectively extract bioactive compounds from waste streams allows for sustainable development of new products and unlocking new markets for New Zealand.  Biomass is abundant in New Zealand and enabling further use of this resource will create opportunities to support economic benefits for the country.

Towards biorefineries

At the Bioeconomy Science Institute, our science capability and expertise allows us to see the potential in bark as an overlooked resource. We have explored it's potential in the Bark Biorefinery programme where high-value chemicals from pine bark were investigated, and other biorefinery research is ongoing.

This work reflects leadership in the deployment of industrial biotechnology and our commitment to converting waste into valuable products.

Read the full paper: Ranganathan, S., Campion, S., Dale, R.A. et al. Determining the sequence of extracting Pinus radiata bark to maximize the total yield of extractives–towards the development of a bark-based biorefinery. Bioresour. Bioprocess. 12, 49 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40643-025-00896-3