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Biofuels and the world food crisis

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A group of Bangladeshi children return home after collecting rice from a government subsidized outlet. The price of food has skyrocketed around the world, leading to riots in some countries and fears of starvation in others. (Pavel Rahman, AP)

The Denver Post: editorial: Biofuels and the world food crisis

Article Last Updated: 04/17/2008 10:47:51 PM MDT

The rising tide of hunger in poor countries might seem like an unfortunate circumstance that has little connection to the comfortable lifestyle that most Americans enjoy.

But it’s the maintenance of this lifestyle that has exacerbated food shortages, which threaten world political stability.
The food crisis now affecting nearly 40 countries is a situation that the U.S. has both an interest in and a responsibility to address in a serious way.

First, we have national security interests in ensuring stability in countries like Pakistan and Egypt, where food riots have broken out.

We also have a responsibility to ensure that U.S. policies subsidizing biofuel production are not taking food out of people’s mouths in order to put fuel in our gas tanks.

To be sure, the worldwide diversion of land and edible crops to biofuel production is only one of the reasons why the prices of wheat, corn, rice and other basics have soared over the past few years.

Other reasons include the growing affluence of the Chinese, whose ability to afford meat has increased the overall demand for grain to feed livestock. We can’t do much about that.

Another is the skyrocketing price of oil, which comes to bear in the production and transportation of crops. In addition, bad weather has reduced crop production in recent years.

But it’s also true that biofuels are a significant part of the problem.

In the U.S., Europe and other parts of the world, the giving over of land for biofuel production was supposed to boost energy independence and be part of the climate change solution.

Unfortunately, the law of unintended consequences reared its ugly head.

Commodity prices have risen as farmland is dedicated to crops for fuel production. Deforestation, which contributes to global warming, has accelerated as land is devoted to biofuel production.

And the inefficiencies of some biofuel production are becoming apparent.

In the U.S., corn ethanol represented just 3.5 percent of the motor gasoline supplies in 2006. But it took 14 percent of the nation’s corn crop to produce it. By 2010, 30 percent of corn is expected to go to ethanol.

Congress must examine how its corn ethanol subsidy policies have affected food availability and cost.

Federal lawmakers also must look at a range of other solutions, including more effective ways of reducing energy demand while investing in alternative energy sources, including next-generation biofuels made from inedible food byproducts such as corn stalks.

As for immediate intervention in the food crisis, one day after World Bank president Robert Zoellick’s call for help, President Bush ordered the release of $200 million in emergency aid.

That’s an appropriate response and we’re glad to see the president act so quickly. Furthermore, the White House is pushing for the money to be spent locally — that is, close to where the food is needed. That will cut down on transportation costs, also a prudent move.

This country has gone to great effort to study and guard against many and varied problems that face the world, including terrorist attacks and global warming.

It’s ironic that hunger, among the most simple threats to the human species, has roared to the forefront with the power to kill millions and destabilize countries.

It is incumbent on President Bush and federal lawmakers to join with world leaders to alleviate the immediate threat of starvation and support long-term solutions.

http://www.denverpost.com/editorials/ci_8964812

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