Browse > Home / Opinion / Today in World Opinion: US, EU biofuel policy a “criminal path” according to UN Special Rapporteur; anti-speculative legislation proposed

Today in World Opinion: US, EU biofuel policy a “criminal path” according to UN Special Rapporteur; anti-speculative legislation proposed

April 29, 2008

The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Jean Ziegler, described US and EU biofuels policy as a “criminal path.” The AP reported that  a transcript of a briefing to UN leaders, Ziegler said that “fuel policies pursued by the US and the EU were one of the main causes of the current worldwide food crisis.” The AP reported: “He also said that speculation on international markets was behind 30 per cent of the increase in food prices.  He said that companies such as Cargill, which controls a quarter of all cereal production, have enormous power over the market. He added that hedge funds are also making huge profits from raw materials markets, and called for new financial regulations to prevent such speculation.”  Reuters reported this morning that the UN and World Bank have set up a task force on global food prices, and warned countries not to hoard food.

From the Canberra Times: “The supposed crimes of biofuels are manifold. They’re behind soaring global commodity prices, the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, increased rather than diminished greenhouse gases, food riots in Haiti and Indonesian deforestation.
Most of this, to borrow a farm image, is hogwash and bilge…If Asian rice prices are soaring, along with the global prices of wheat and maize, it’s not principally because John Doe in Iowa or Jean Dupont in Picardy has decided to turn yummy corn and beet into ethanol feedstock. Much larger trends are at work which dwarf the $US40 billion biofuel industry. I refer to the rise of more than one-third of humanity in China and India, the disintegrating dollar and soaring oil prices. Hundreds of millions of people have moved from poverty into the global economy over the past decade in Asia. Their demand for food staples and once unthinkable luxuries like meat is pushing up prices.”

  • Today in Biofuels: $1.01 US tax credit for cellulosic ethanol proposed in Senate; Florida moves to E10; Brazil’s Brenco to raise $3.2 billion in IPO
    • Top Story:A report from Raymond James analyst Pavel Molchanov said that "the reduction in the [ethanol] tax credit is not likely to have a direct impact on ethanol producer margins, if only because th...
  • Today in Biofuels Opinion: “Rarely has there been so much condescending feel-good hooey from anti-government conservatives and anti-big business, save-the-world liberals”
    • Bob Scott, president of the American Coalition for Ethanol: "Today, we face strong opposition, and their weapon primarily is the press." The editors of Forum.com: "The convergence of conservative...
  • Heads of Brazilian, EU, Canadian and US ethanol groups write to UN Sec-Gen: “Apocalyptic statements by Special Rapporteur of the Right to Food are unacceptable”
    • The heads of the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association, (US) Renewable Fuels Association, European Bioethanol Fuel Association and the Brazilian Sugar Cane Industry Association wrote to the UN Secretar...
  • UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food calls conversion of foodstocks to fuel a “crime against humanity”
    • The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Jean Ziegler, said it was a "crime against humanity" to convert food crops to fuel. Dr. Ziegler, United Nations in a report that was submitted to the...
  • UN official calls for five-year ban on conversion of land for biofuels; says biofuels are “a total disaster for those who are starving”; to submit report to UN General Assembly on Oct 25th
    • The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, in a report that will be submitted to the UN General Assembly on October 25, has called for a five-year ban on conversion of land for biofue...
  • UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food says biofuels will lead to “massive hunger”, calls for “five year moratorium” on sugarcane ethanol
    • The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Jean Ziegler, said that "transformation of agricultural land for the production of bio-fuels in America" is a "huge problem. This had resulted in the ri...

    Written by Jim Lane · Filed Under Opinion 

    Comments

    Got something to say?

    You must be logged in to post a comment.