Enhancing efficiency in secondary biomass supply: the role of institutional quality in the EU regions

Cristian Barra, Vincenzo D’Atteo and Edgardo Sica ()
Additional contact information
Vincenzo D’Atteo: University of Foggia
Edgardo Sica: University of Foggia

Economic Change and Restructuring, 2025, vol. 58, issue 5, No 4, 43 pages

Abstract: Abstract As the European Union accelerates its transition towards a Circular Bioeconomy (CBE), the sustainable and efficient production of biomass has become more critical than ever. Agricultural residues—long dismissed as waste or environmental liabilities—are now gaining recognition as strategic resources with high potential for bioenergy, bioproducts, and soil restoration. Yet, turning this potential into reality hinges on understanding the broader institutional conditions that shape their supply efficiency. This paper sheds new light on the role of institutional quality in determining how effectively agricultural residues are produced across EU regions. Drawing on Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), we first estimate regional technical efficiency levels and then examine how key dimensions of institutional quality affect these outcomes through regression analysis. Our findings reveal a strong link between efficiency in agricultural residue production and institutional strength, notably government effectiveness, transparent regulation, and anti-corruption measures. These insights suggest that institutional reforms—aimed at boosting governance credibility, reducing bureaucratic hurdles, and enhancing transparency—can unlock underutilised biomass flows, advancing CBE objectives.

Keywords: Circular Bioeconomy; Agricultural residues; Efficiency Score; DEA; Institutional Quality; EU Regions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10644-025-09916-w Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:ecopln:v:58:y:2025:i:5:d:10.1007_s10644-025-09916-w

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... nt/journal/10644/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10644-025-09916-w

Access Statistics for this article

Economic Change and Restructuring is currently edited by George Hondroyiannis

More articles in Economic Change and Restructuring from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().