Europe sees sense on biofuels

All good sense should be welcomed, even when it is long delayed. So I very much applaud the European Commission’s decision to halve its target for the amount of fuel that should come from food crops.

Biofuels accounted for 4.5% in 2011 and the aim was to reach 10% by 2020, but this has now been cut to 5%.

There has been growing concern that biofuels push up food prices and are not eco-efficient.

Fortunately, the Commission now takes far more account of this: “The Commission’s message for post-2020 is that our clear preference is biofuels from non-food feedstocks, like waste or agricultural residues such as straw. These new types of biofuels are not in competition with food, nor do they require additional land.”

Let’s hope a similar US policy change is not too far behind.