Alyn Smith MEP has welcomed yesterday's vote in the European Parliament to tackle rising food prices and carbon emissions from the impact of biofuels which compete directly with food and animal feed.
MEPs voted to amend the Fuel Quality and Renewable Energy Directives, primarily by placing a cap on the contribution of crop-based biofuels towards the 2020 target requiring 10% of transport fuels to come from renewable sources.
Only 6% of transport fuels will be able to be sourced from cereals, sugars, starch-rich crops and oil crops, all of which compete with food consumption either directly, or indirectly through animal feed.
The parliament also voted for a new target by 2020 that 2.5% of transport fuels should come from so-called "advanced biofuels", including straw, animal manure, mixed municipal waste, algae and bacteria: emerging fuel technologies that do not compete with food uses.
Other forms of advanced biofuels, such as waste cooking oil and animal fats, will count double towards the 10% target to encourage the growth and investment in these industries.
The legislative reform comes after growing evidence that the competition between food and fuel uses for crops leads to rising food prices and increased global hunger. One survey by the Institute for European Environmental Policy showed price rises of 13% for wheat and 21% for sugar cane.
Mr Smith commented: "It is plain wrong-headed to encourage the world's farmers to feed our cars instead of our people and animals. We have to prioritise food consumption over fuel for cars, and the cap on crop-based biofuels should go a long way to achieving this."
l In a letter to First Minister Alex Salmond, Prime Minister David Cameron has refused to return to Scotland the levy income paid by Scots livestock producers whose cattle, sheep and pigs are slaughtered in the rest of the UK.
Last month the First Minister wrote to Mr Cameron making the case for levy repatriation and ending the practice which costs Quality Meat Scotland, £1.4 million a year.
Market round-up
Lawrie and Symington Ltd held their second sale of breeding sheep in Lanark on Tuesday. Top prices and averages: Scotch Mule gimmers to £153 and averaged £127.75 for 593 (-£2.14 on the year); Scotch Mule ewe lambs £110 and £87.80 for 437 (+£1.55); Texel gimmers £142 and £117.94 (-£9.21).
Messrs Craig Wilson Ltd sold 1163 prime lambs in Newton Stewart yesterday to a top of £78.80 per head and 181.6p per kg to average 161.3p (-8.9p on the week).
The 501 cast sheep forward saw ewes sell to £76 for Texels and £40 for Blackfaces.
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