Food, farmers and fuel: balancing global grain and energy policies with sustainable land use

Nov 2008

The public debate on agrofuels changed dramatically over the past year. What started out as an intriguing proposal on an apparently innovative alternative fuel source quickly turned into an important and contentious topic of international discussion. The United States, the European Union and many developing countries set ambitious targets for agrofuel consumption. But these goals were not matched by appropriate caution about the potential impacts of this new demand for agricultural goods on food prices, the environment, or local economies.
The sharp rise in food prices around the world brought these issues into the public focus. While estimates of the precise impact of agrofuel production on food prices vary, it is clear that the greater demand for grains resulting from that production - along with rising petroleum costs, increased droughts and flooding resulting from climate change, and the lack of adequate public support for agricultural production—all had major impacts on food prices.
Though commodity prices have since fallen from their peaks in early 2008, the underlying vulnerability of farmers and consumers remains intact. Each of the causes of food price volatility requires urgent attention to address the impacts on both producers and consumers.
ActionAid works with partners in developing countries to find solutions to the food crisis that respond to poor peoples’ needs. In country after country, we hear that farmers want to build on their existing knowledge and resources to develop sustainable approaches to food production. They want to use fewer imported petroleum-based inputs and adapt to the impacts of climate changes that are already affecting their yields. Farmers need access to markets, credit, technical assistance, water, and land to increase food production and fulfill their communities’ and their nations’ right to food.
ActionAid believes that it is time to stop the headlong rush to agrofuel production, to assess the impacts to date, and to listen to what farmers and consumers are saying about their needs for food and fuel production. Rich countries should scrap their targets and incentives for agrofuel production. Only after governments from both the North and South fully assess the impacts should they implement a more sustainable approach that balances the need for food production with the global demand for renewable energy.
It contains case studies from Brazil, Guatemala, Ghana, Mozambique and Senegal.

By: ActionAid International

 
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