Increasing the use of biomass as an energy source and for industrial materials offers potential environmental benefi ts and new possibilities for the use of land. Despite recent UK and EU legislation, its availability in the UK is currently on a very small scale. Quantifying the amount of biomass the UK can grow is not a simple process. Louise Dommett - the National Non-Food Crops Centre (NNFCC) - reports on calculated fi gures for the current and potential total biomass that is and could be grown by the UK. © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd