Today in World Opinion: Euro Ford exec says sustainability standards are critical; Bajaj Hindustan chief says food and fuel both possible; Canadian scribe says Canada should follow German, Castro lead

Moneymorning.com writes that “corn prices will continue to rise….as high as $6 a bushel….not such a good thing for the American consumer. Corn is also used to make soft drinks, bubble gum, ketchup, mayonnaise, peanut butter, bread, cereal and beer. Prices for those food items are already rising due to inflation and corn’s swelling price is causing more pain at the cash register….In 2007, the cost of a gallon of milk increased 26%; eggs went up 40%; and a loaf of white bread went from $1.05 to $1.28 from 2006 to 2008….But despite the shortfall, the USDA also said that farmers will plant only 86 million acres of corn this year, an 8% drop from 2007…because many farmers are finding bigger profits in wheat and soybeans…..A recent study from Purdue University puts the added food cost from the renewable mandate at $15 billion in 2007 - about $130 per household. And that was from ethanol usage at a fraction of what will be required in the years ahead.

Kushagra Bajaj, joint managing director of Bajaj Hindusthan, writes: “Is it actually an issue of food versus fuel? Can we not have both food and fuel? And both in plenty? Stanford University biologist Chris Somerville has calculated that with the right plants, just 3.5% of the earth’s surface can supply all of humanity’s energy needs, compared to the 13% now used for agriculture.
Today, there is more food available per capita than ever before in the world….an estimated one out of the six billion people in the world go without enough food to meet their basic needs. This is not because of food scarcity. It is because they are the victims of an inequitable economic system.

Kevin Libin writes in Canada’s Western Standard and a column in the National Post, “With everyone from Germany’s environment minister to the editorial board at The Economist to Fidel Castro challenging the biofuel fad, where are Canadian policy makers on this issue?….“The Government of Canada is committed to biofuels production. Biofuels not only offer new markets for farmers, but new jobs for our cities and towns, and a new source of cleaner renewable energy.”

Jan Brentebraten of European Ford told an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority conference that “High-level biofuel blends are being touted as an affordable way of cutting carbon emissions before more complex oil-substitution technologies are widely available. It is very important to focus on what’s available today and not sit and wait for something better to come along…E85 [is] about a third cheaper than petrol-electric hybrids….[agreements on sustainability standards are] “absolutely critical. It is in nobody’s interest to replace one bad option with another.”