**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** NON-PLASTIC FOOD PACKAGING FEATURES PER- AND POLY-FLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES (PFAS) THAT POSE SEVERE THREATS TO HUMAN HEALTH AND THE ECOSYSTEM. IN RESPONSE TO THE URGENT NEED TO MIGRATE AWAY FROM PFAS COATINGS AND DEVELOP ECO-FRIENDLY AND SUSTAINABLE SINGLE-USE PACKAGING, WE PROPOSE TO 1) PRODUCE LIGNIN MICRO AND NANO PARTICLES (LMNP) FROM BIOREFINERY, PULP AND PAPER LIGNIN STREAMS; 2) DEVELOP LMNP SURFACE COATING AND ADDITIVE METHODS FOR PAPER AND FIBER PACKAGING THAT RETAIN THE FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES OF PERFLUORINATED COATINGS WITHOUT THE HARMFUL HEALTH EFFECTS; AND 3) PRODUCE AND TEST FOOD PACKAGING WITH OUR BEST-PERFORMING LMNP FORMULATION. IN COLLABORATION WITH OUR INDUSTRIAL PARTNER, WE WILL DEVELOP AND TRANSFER A FEASIBLE LMNP ADDITIVE TECHNOLOGY FOR FIBER AND PAPER FOOD PACKAGING PRODUCTS. TO GAIN PUBLIC INTEREST IN BIOBASED PRODUCTS, WE WILL DEPLOY AN OUTREACH PROGRAM THAT ENCOMPASSES 1) EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS FOR PREPARING SCIENTISTS TO EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATE THEIR SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES; AND 2) INDUSTRY FIELD DAY EVENTS AND BIOBASED PRODUCT INFORMATION CAMPAIGNS THAT ENGAGES AND CONNECTS RESEARCHERS, INDUSTRY PARTNERS, PUBLIC SECTOR REPRESENTATIVES, JOURNALISTS, AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC. OUR INFORMATION CAMPAIGNS WILL BE ASSESSED AND UPGRADED VIA CONSUMER AWARENESS SURVEYS. OUR TRANSFORMATIONAL APPROACH ADDRESSES THE BIOENERGY, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND ENVIRONMENT PROGRAM'S PRIORITY AREA OF SUSTAINABLE BIOECONOMY THROUGH BIOBASED PRODUCTS. WE WILL ACHIEVE THE PRIORITY AREA GOALS BY 1) DEVELOPING INNOVATIVE AND SCALABLE NANOLIGNIN-BASED ADDITIVES AND COATINGS THAT WILL CREATE NEW REVENUE STREAMS FOR CONVENTIONAL PULP AND PAPER MILLS AND UPCOMING BIOREFINERIES, 2) ENGAGING AND EDUCATING THE PUBLIC ABOUT BIOBASED PACKAGING, AND 3) SUSTAINABLY TRANSFORMING THE RURAL BIOECONOMY.