Call for
moratorium on
Agrofuels
Ian Hudghton MEP
is supporting
calls by Green/EFA
MEPs, asking the
European
Commission to
scrap its 10%
target for
agrofuels and to
establish a
moratorium to
allow
clarification of
their use.
Mr. Hudghton
said:
"Agrofuels alone
are not to blame
for the rise in
food prices, but
they are
exacerbating the
current crisis.
Agrofuels only
make sense when
they contribute
to climate
protection and
that is not
currently the
case. It was a
bad move from
the start to
replace food
crops with
energy crops and
the 10%
agrofuels target
that the
European
Commission is
still clinging
onto cannot be
justified.
"I fully support
a moratorium on
the use of crops
as an energy
source. The boom
in production of
inefficient
agrofuels at a
time of rising
food prices
worldwide is
creating
competition
between food and
energy
production. To
counter this, I
support biomass
as an energy
source, based on
efficient use of
residues and
waste, since
this does not
compete with
food production
or contribute to
the climate
change problem.
The current food
crisis will only
worsen if the
consequences of
climate change
are not taken
into account.
The EU must now
respond and make
food security a
priority.
"Several
scientific
advisers to the
European
Commission have
come out against
the agrofuels
target, yet it
still holds onto
its course and
refers to the EU
leaders'
decision in
March 2007 to
source 10% of
renewable
energies from
agrofuels by
2020. This
target was
clearly set
under great
pressure from
the car
industry, which
was trying to
deflect
attention from
its own
pressures
regarding
efficiency
measures for
cars. We need a
reform of
European
agriculture,
trade and energy
policies to put
food security
first and to
introduce
sustainability
criteria in food
production.
"The Commission
should bring an
end to
mislabelling -
so-called 'biofuels'
are in fact 'agrofuels'
and have nothing
to do with
environmental
protection. They
create high
risks for food
production and
the environment
and the
Commission
must acknowledge
this in the
language it
uses."
