The EU, the US and the UK are among countries that mandate the use of biofuels, usually mixed with petrol or diesel fuel, for road vehicles.
But much of the biofuel used derives from food crops, including wheat, maize and edible oils. The World Food Programme has warned that the rising prices of these staples, which has been driven by a combination of the Covid pandemic, climate breakdown and the war in Ukraine, is generating a food crisis around the world.
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RePlanet found that although the original justification for biofuels was as a lower carbon alternative to fossil fuels, in fact, owing to the impact on food, the fertiliser and energy used to produce the grains and oils and the land converted to agriculture to produce biofuels, there is little carbon saving over fossil fuels.
Related on the SLP
RePlanet also argues that consumers in rich countries should eat less meat to free up grain for people’s diets around the world, and that prohibitions around the world – particularly in the EU – on the genetic modification of crops should be lifted to make higher yields possible.
In another recommendation likely to be controversial, the report suggests that the EU’s organic targets should also be ditched in favour of conventional and intensive farming techniques to allow for higher productivity.
