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Gas station with biofuel
Photo: A3602 Frank Rumpenhorst/ dpa/dpaweb
The environmental protection organization »Transport & Environment« considers the production of biofuels to be »irresponsible« in view of the threatening food shortage caused by the war in Ukraine.
According to a study published on Thursday, "the vast majority of biofuels used in the EU" are made from agricultural products that could also serve as food.
Since Russia and Ukraine threatened to lose their role as "important suppliers of staple foods" because of the war, the products could no longer be used for fuel production.
The environmentalists found that 78 percent of the raw materials for biodiesel are oils derived from canola, palm, soy and sunflower.
In the case of bioethanol, as much as 96 percent comes from agricultural products.
In Europe, “10,000 tons of wheat” – the equivalent of 15 million loaves of bread – are processed into ethanol for cars every day, the organization calculated.
While Europe is almost completely self-sufficient in wheat, around 22 percent of corn is imported, mainly from Ukraine.
However, while Europe will be able to cope with the impending failures, "some economically weaker countries could not do this in view of the price increases," emphasized the "Transport & Environment" organization.
Does production have to be stopped?
In doing so, the organization joined the warnings of development workers worldwide who are warning of famine and political instability in many poorer countries.
Environmentalists warn that Russia and Ukraine together supply "about a quarter of the world's wheat and barley, 15 percent of corn and over 60 percent of sunflower oil."
The organization warned of a chain reaction that would make it increasingly difficult for developing countries to import much-needed food.
Altogether, a dozen organizations are "calling on national governments to immediately stop the use of raw materials from food and forage crops in biofuels."
At the same time, they opposed plans by the European Commission to "open areas reserved for biodiversity for food production" before all other options have been exhausted.
The EU is considering using brownfield land to offset production losses caused by the war in Ukraine.
The environmental benefits of biofuels were controversial even before the Ukraine war, as production converts vast areas into monocultures for corn and other energy crops, threatening biodiversity.
beb/afp