The Government of Pará Delivers the Amazon Bioeconomy and Innovation Park, a World Pioneer
The Park consolidates the State as a global reference in sustainable development and the epicenter of bioeconomy in Brazil and the world
The governor of Pará, Helder Barbalho, delivered this Tuesday (7) the most diverse technological development complex in the world based on forest production: the Amazon Bioeconomy and Innovation Park. A structuring project of the State Bioeconomy Plan, the Park is already born as the largest hub of this segment in Latin America and the only technological park on the planet that uses the potential of the forest to serve traditional communities and startups in the area.
Located in Warehouses 5 and 6 of the old port of Belém, in the Porto Futuro Complex, the 6,000 square meters (m²) space positions Pará at the forefront of sustainable innovation, combining science, technology, and traditional knowledge to transform Amazonian biodiversity into high-value-added businesses.
“Today, we have the privilege, the extraordinary opportunity of delivering the Amazon Bioeconomy Park, the most important bioeconomy facility in the world, and we must be proud of this. It is an investment aimed at industrializing, transforming products from the forest, from the simplest to the most complex, with equipment that is the most modern available in the national and international market. Remembering that the products are national, but they are cutting-edge technologies. The goal is, in this Bioeconomy Park, to build the environment to promote economic activities based on the wealth of Amazonian biodiversity, so that we can extract the riches from our biodiversity. And it is important to note that, in 2019, we had only 200 businesses arising from bioeconomy. We have reached 800 businesses this year,” said Helder Barbalho.
Historic Moment - On this occasion, the governor led a guided tour of the Park's Laboratory-Factory, where products that can be developed from the machinery available on site were presented.
“I want to wish success to all those who will use this space for their enterprise, for new businesses, and also, as we have already seen, for the expansion of existing businesses. And we can witness here the potential we have for growth. I want each one to imagine this place as a business center, a center for transformation and growth of our economy. Congratulations to all who built it,” said Vice Governor Hana Ghassan.
“The establishment of this Park represents a new chapter in the history of Pará. We are creating a space where scientific knowledge, technological innovation, and the wisdom of traditional communities walk together to value our biodiversity and transform it into sustainable opportunities. We want this to be a living environment of cooperation, where ideas become solutions, businesses become impact, and the forest becomes synonymous with prosperity. Pará is ready to lead the Amazonian bioeconomy with responsibility and a vision for the future,” emphasized the head of Semas, Raul Protázio Romão.
“I would like to congratulate not only the governor but also his tireless team, who have also worked with the federal government in seeking cooperations that will help strengthen the strategy here. I was thinking about why, and we look at all this wonderful structure, and it symbolizes a lot at COP. We do not want it to be just a showcase, but it is important that it is, because we are still asked if it is possible to produce in the Amazon,” said Carina Pimenta, National Secretary of Bioeconomy of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.
A Technical Cooperation Agreement was also signed between the Government of Pará and the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, aiming to promote integration actions between the National Bioeconomy Development Plan and the State Bioeconomy Plan of Pará, as well as the Federal Program for Payment for Environmental Services and the Pará Environmental Services Payment Program.
Structure and Strategic Axes - Warehouse 5, called the Business Center, houses the Center for Sociobioeconomics and the Center for Social Gastronomy. This space concentrates coworking areas, incubators, accelerators, meeting rooms, investment funds, an innovation showroom, an event lounge, and the One-Stop Shop, which connects entrepreneurs to technological and productive solutions. The Center for Sociobioeconomics brings together the Living Laboratory, a co-creation environment among communities, startups, and researchers, and the School of Forest Knowledge, dedicated to valuing traditional knowledge and technical training aimed at sustainable management. The Center for Social Gastronomy promotes sustainable gastronomic experiences and values Amazonian food culture as an expression of sociobiodiversity.
In Warehouse 6, the Laboratory-Factory integrates the Innovation Center. It is a pilot plant equipped for Research & Development (R&D) and experimental production of food, cosmetics, and fine chemicals from forest inputs. In this same space are the R&D Management, responsible for articulating the network of partner laboratories and connecting research to the productive sector, and the Innovation Showroom, a showcase of green technologies and new bioeconomy products for investors, buyers, and partners.
“Today is an extremely important and special moment for us, the peoples of the forest, because 40 years ago, when the CNS said that it is possible to live with the forest alive, everyone doubted that it was possible to live with a living forest. And the project that was in place for the Amazon was a development project that did not involve us. And today, when we are here, discussing with different entities, with different organizations and with the government, what the living forest represents, this gives us support for everything. The Government of Pará is to be congratulated today for this moment that, for us, is a historic milestone,” said Letícia Moraes, vice president of the National Council of Extractive Populations (CNS).
Partnerships and Investments - The total investment value of the Park was around R$ 300 million, through the partnership between the government and Vale, within the Pará Structure Program.
At the delivery event of the space, sponsorship agreements for the Park were celebrated with the companies Natura, Ambipar, and Fundo Vale.
“All the investments we made, not only in the organizations that are in the Amazon keeping this forest standing, but also later in businesses that have great potential, make perfect sense in this context of boosting the bioeconomy. Thank you very much for the trust you placed in us to be here with you today, building and being part of this story,” emphasized Patrícia Daros, Operations Director of Fundo Vale.
“This investment reinforces what we believe and practice for over 25 years in the Amazon. Sociobioeconomics is an integrative solution for facing climate crises and biodiversity loss. And this Park is proof that together – private initiative, public power, and society – we can transform this territory into an innovative reference for regenerative economy for the world,” stated Ana Costa, Vice President of Sustainability, Legal, and Corporate Reputation at Natura.
“For us, it is a great pride and a huge privilege to be able to participate, to be part of what this facility, this Park, represents, the importance it will bring, the transformation we have here, and that will happen in the coming years in the Amazonian socioeconomy. Ambipar is a Brazilian company of environmental solutions, and we have sustainability as our business, ecological transformation. And being part of a legacy to boost the bioeconomy and bring social development to the Amazon region is a source of pride for us, and it makes perfect sense,” assured Fernanda Sossai, Executive Director of Sustainability at Ambipar.
