More creative and innovative uses of California’s biological resources could aid the state’s rural economies and tackle other environmental and economic challenges, according to University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.

As DevEng Prof. David Zilberman put it, “The bioeconomy represents a transformative pathway for addressing 21st-century challenges of climate change, environmental degradation, and rural economic decline.”

For instance, Zilberman and colleagues looked at the circular nature of California’s almond industry.

Almond shells produce extra value when they’re sold as livestock feed. But they found that the shells could also be returned in mulch to the very orchards from which the nuts grew, adding potassium to the soil.

Zilberman and his colleagues’ work suggests that, “where transportation costs are low enough and shell amendments are needed, the practice could generate an additional $21 million to $31 million in annual value while recycling nutrients, improving soil health, and reducing waste.”

Innovation in the bioeconomy need not replace California agriculture’s traditional strengths, UC ANR says, but instead build on them, as shown in Zilberman’s almond analysis.