Number of words: 702

Much has been made about the tension between fuel crops and food crops and that the growing of biofuels, especially ethanol, is leading to food price inflation. But there are good Biofuels and bad biofuels. In the United States, most ethanol is made from corn and, in 2007, US farmers grew over 13 billion bushels of corn on 85 million acres, of which a little over 20% went to make 7 billion gallons of ethanol. But that still left enough to satisfy both the US market and a record demand for exports. If US farmers can continue to produce corn-based ethanol without impacting on food output, the same could hold true in many European countries, including Ireland, for the production of other types of biofuel crops on non-food-producing lands. Damage to the environment and direct competition with food crops, however, is occurring elsewhere in the developing world as deforestation makes more arable land and existing food crops are replaced by more profitable biofuel feedstock. Food price inflation can be impacted by other factors, including a sharp increase in global demand, rising oil and gas prices and climate factors such as the recent drought in Australia and floods in Argentina, two large wheat producers. 

Producing ethanol from corn, however, is not as efficient as producing it from Brazilian sugar cane, which is why companies worldwide are beating a path to Brazilian partners to make biodiesel, biogasoline and jet fuel from sugar cane and why Brazil is now a net exporter of bio-ethanol. Biofuel can also be made from feed- stocks that don’t compete with food supplies, displace crops of cause CO, emissions from forest destruction, such as switch grass, which has gift deep roots and thrives in arid regions. 

Biodiesel, made from the process of transesterification and then mixed with alcohol to convert it into a fuel, is 100% biodegradable and both safer and cleaner than petroleum diesel. Although soya bean oil is currently the most economical source for biodiesel, it can also be made from rape seed, mustard, palm oil, canola oil and algae. Biodiesel can be used 100% as a fuel in engines or can be blended with regular diesel. The IEA estimates that in the United States alone, biodiesel production is set to grow to 400 million gallons by 2030. In Europe, driven by directives, biodiesel will also contribute significantly to the European renewable energy targets. 

The cutting edge in the advances in the production of biodiesel is in producing it from certain types of algae rather than from feedstock. These simple water-based organisms capture light and create a type of vegetable oil. Algae can be grown anywhere with sunlight but the process still requires high amounts of energy, which is why innovators in algae biodiesel are positioning their plants adjacent to existing power plants to benefit from the surplus heat they create. 

Biofuels, of course, are not a panacea. There simply isn’t enough suitable unused arable land and water to grow sufficient feedstock to meet global biofuel demand, particularly for transportation, and even with currently high and rising oil prices the EROEI is unattractive. Nevertheless, the market for biofuels as part of the energy mix is set to grow exponentially, but challenges remain. Policies will need to be carefully balanced to ensure that a large- scale switch to growing biofuel feed stocks does not lead to deforestation, loss of animal habitat, increased poverty and hegemony by big international corporations squeezing small family farmers.

 Unquestionably there will be winners and losers in the biofuel sector as oil prices rise. The losers will be feedstock consumers in the agriculture sector who will face higher costs for cattle feed. US ethanol, made from a large chunk of the annual US corn crop, is dependent on energy prices. First, there is the gas used to manufacture the vast amounts of fertiliser needed to support the

crop Second, embedded in the harvesting process, is the oil required fuel large-scale agricultural plant. Finally, there is the coal burned to generate the electricity used in the distillation process. Arguably corn-derived ethanol wouldn’t exist at all if it weren’t for the subsidies and supports underpinning the market.

Excerpted frompages 141to 142 of ‘Energise, by Eddie Hobbs