Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The main argument in the food-versus-fuel debate is that there are millions of underfed people
in the world, mostly in third-world (developing) countries; therefore it is morally wrong to divert a
portion of food crop production (mostly in the developed world) to biofuel production while people
elsewhere in the world go hungry. But, it is counterargued that, in realistic terms the world produces
enough food to feed everyone adequately. Approximately one half of all food produced in the world
is wasted—either due to spoilage before use or it is not eaten after it is served. A small reduction
in food spoilage or post serving waste would see everyone in the world potentially provided with
adequate food. Total food crop production is not the issue—fair and equitable distribution is the
real issue.
From the perspective of a developed country such as Canada, reasons could be cited (http://www.
canola-council.org) to support that increased demand for canola oil to produce biodiesel will not
reduce the availability of canola for food use. For example, 1.3 million t of additional canola seed is
required to fulfill the Canadian government's requirement of 2% renewable fuel (biodiesel) added
to the normal diesel fuel. This requirement will not affect the supply of edible canola oil because
the carryover (unsold) volume of canola was 1.59, 2.02, and 1.58 MT in the years 2004/2005,
2005/2006, and 2006/2007, respectively. It is also pointed out that farmers in Canada produce 75%
more canola than is required to meet the needs of Canadian consumers. Therefore, an increase in
local consumption of canola is desirable which can be achieved by developing a new market for the
crop, such as biodiesel.
Another concern in the food-versus-fuel issue is that bioenergy oil crops not only encourage
the destruction of habitat (e.g., clearing of South East Asia forests for palm oil) but also causes
the displacement of agriculture production toward grasslands or other “marginal” uncultivated
areas causing a loss of biodiversity, GHG savings and local land rights (http://www.dft.gov.uk/
rfa/_db/_documents/Report_of_the_Gallagher_review.pdf). Indonesia and Malaysia together meet
88% of the global palm oil demand, and as more palm oil production is diverted to the production of
biodiesel, it is likely that the area cropped to oil palm will expand (Cassman and Lska 2007). This
expansion may come at the expense of diverse grasslands and forests, disturbing the ecosystems.
The land-use change will also result in loss of most of the above ground (vegetation and litter) and
below ground (soil, roots) carbon in forests, savannas and grasslands, and the carbon payback in
Malaysia (palm to biodiesel) and the United States (soybean to biodiesel) could be as high as 38
years (The Gallagher Review). However, there are contrary views and arguments in this regard
emphasizing that land displacement can be avoided by increasing the crop yields per unit area with
advanced technologies (better management for inputs, efficient water and land use, high yielding
varieties, etc.) in agriculture production systems. According to one study (Wolk et al. 2003), 55%
of the total land area under agriculture throughout the world is enough to meet the global food
supply to 2050 using the modern agricultural production practices, which leaves the remainder of
the agriculture land (45%) to produce crops for non-food uses. Canada is an example where the
challenge of increased demand (12-15 MT) for canola (due to its use as fuel crop and resulting
attractive prices) has been met not only by a modest increase in the number of acres planted to
canola but also by an elevation of canola yields from an average of 26-30 bushels/acre as a result of
improved high yielding varieties (http://www.canola-council.org).
Increases in food prices such as for seed oil are also considered to be driven by a rise in the
value of commodities as feedstock for fuel. For example, the high demand for biodiesel in EU has
led to a large increase in the price of rapeseed oil. However, the consumers in developed countries
(EU, the United States, Canada, Japan) generally can afford the small increases in food (canola oil)
costs. Even in the poorest regions of the world, the production of biodiesel can in fact improve the
economic welfare of the people. One example is Peru where farmers are producing biodiesel from
canola for domestic use, and the other is cultivation of jatropha for biodiesel production in parts
of Africa, creating new sources of income for farmers (http://www.canola-council.org). Alternate
outlets/markets for food crops such as provided by the use of biofuel positively affects average
crop prices and encourages more production to meet market needs. These are positive changes for
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