Food Versus Fuel
Winrock recognizes the food versus fuel debate is polarizing and evokes strong emotions.
Food and fuel crops have always competed for land, water, soil and nutrients. Now, increasingly
globalized markets for both commodities and demand for fuel from developed countries raise
fears that fuel crop production will reduce biodiversity, degrade the environment and push poor
people off of the land they need to survive.
Much of the current debate ignores the science and economics of production. Higher food and
fuel prices can enable investment in improved infrastructure and better agronomic practices to
support production. Higher prices will also bring higher rural incomes if neglected agriculture
and forestry institutions are strengthened to assure that the capacity to use improved technology
is built equitably.
Winrock believes that biofuels can be produced in ways that provide net environmental benefits
and increase the income of poor communities. As a result, we focus our biofuels work on sugar,
cellulosic feedstocks, and crops that can be grown on marginal land, all of which can be produced
in ways that do not compete with land for food. We also seek to strengthen the capacity of small
farmers to apply and use better agronomic practices.
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