This briefing paper reviews evidence of the impacts of the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) on food prices, with a focus on corn and soy, and presents new analysis on the impact of the RFS on U.S. livestock farmers. Studies examining the relationship between food prices and biofuel demand conclude …
The foreign adviser, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, has urged the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, to immediately establish a high- level task force to address the acute global food crisis. He made the appeal while chairing a ministerial meeting of LDCs on the eve of the inauguration of UNCTAD-XII in the …
Former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan Saturday told governments to invest more in agriculture to avoid future food crises, but warned that current shortages would hurt the poor. Annan said the surging price of basic foods like rice, wheat and corn in some of the world's poorest countries, which …
The nascent biofuels industry that dawned in the aftermath of massive meltdowns of polar icecaps and Himalayan glaciers, rising sea levels, tsunamis and unprecedented droughts in some regions with attendant floods in others, has already witnessed much tumult in its short history of under a decade. At the core of …
ROME - Biofuels will not solve the world's energy problem, the chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell said on Sunday, amid growing criticism of their environmental and social benefits. The remarks follow protests in Brazil and Europe against fuels derived from food crops. Food shortages and rising costs have set …
Foreign Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury has urged the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to immediately establish a high level Task Force to address the acute global food crisis. He made the appeal while chairing a ministerial meeting of LDCs on the eve of the inaugural of UNCTAD-XII in the Ghana's …
BRAZIL'S President has blamed rising oil prices for the current global food crisis, saying biofuels are not the problem. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said rising oil prices were pushing up freight costs which, in turn, affected world food prices. "Ethanol production has not contributed in any way to …
Bio-fuels hold potential as an energy alternative Bio-fuels have recently been attracting the global spotlight for their potential as an energy alternative. Though increasing environmental concerns have led to a simultaneous cost-benefit analysis, the scales are still tilting in favour of bio-fuels. Goldman Sachs, who predicted a shift in the …
Bad agricultural policies and changing eating habits in developing nations are primarily to blame for rising food prices, not biofuel production as some critics claim, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday. Environmentalists and humanitarian groups have stepped up campaigning against biofuels, arguing they divert production away from food and …
EARLIER this week, junior food minister Akhilesh Prasad Singh, during a TV discussion on soaring food prices, maintained that India had rice and wheat stocks above the April buffer norm and that FAO chief Yumkella's global food crisis assessment had relevance only to Africa. Wake up and smell the coffee, …
The UPA government on Thursday tried to partly deflect criticism for rising food prices towards the Opposition as well as on factors outside its control. Failure of foodgrain procurement by NDA-governed states and international food crisis, it claimed in Rajya Sabha, were to blame for the prices even as Left …
US President George W Bush plans on Wednesday to call for halting the growth of greenhouse gas emissions by 2025. The three candidates vying to succeed him have made more ambitious proposals. Here is what they are saying about environmental and energy issues: * CLIMATE CHANGE New York Sen. Hillary …
Credit Suisse-backed private equity firm Hudson Clean Energy Partners will focus on investments in wind, solar and biofuels, with deal sizes averaging about $100 million, its managing partners said Wednesday. John Cavalier, former head of Credit Suisse's renewable energy investment banking practice, and Neil Auerbach, Hudson's founder, said in an …
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva defended Brazil's production of biofuels on Wednesday, rejecting criticism that they are furthering a surge in global food prices and harming the environment. "Don't tell me, for the love of God, that food is expensive because of biodiesel. Food is expensive because the world …
The idea of turning farms into fuel plants seemed, for a time, like one of the answers to high global oil prices and supply worries. That strategy seemed to reach a high point last year when Congress mandated a fivefold increase in the use of biofuels. But now a reaction …
EU Environment Chief Raises New Biofuels Condition BELGIUM: April 16, 2008 BRUSSELS - The European Union's environment chief raised new conditions on Tuesday for the use of biofuels in road transport, saying social concerns such as food prices and food security must be taken into account. Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas …
Fuel Choices, Food Crises and Finger-Pointing Published: April 15, 2008 Food Prices Rise But now a reaction is building against policies in the United States and Europe to promote ethanol and similar fuels, with political leaders from poor countries contending that these fuels are driving up food prices and starving …
Clearly, there is a mismatch between demand and supply of cereals. And the factors contributing to this widening gap are more than just population growth. Although the reasons for shooting prices vary from cereal to cereal and region to region, there are certain overarching trends that have contributed to the …
