Biofuels

The Issue

Biofuels made from agricultural crops are an alternative solution for addressing increased global energy demands sustainably. Oil prices, environmental and energy security concerns, as well as government policies, determine how much biofuel is produced and used.

While first-generation biofuels rely on crops also used for food and feed, newer, second-generation biofuels use non-food feedstocks such as woody crops, agricultural residues or waste, or non-food crops grown on marginal land.

Our View

Cargill believes biofuels can play an important role in meeting global energy and environmental needs, bringing capital investment to agriculture, and boosting economic development in farm communities.

At the same time, we believe that the growth and development of the biofuels industry must be supported by verifiable environmental benefits—and that the production of biofuels from food crops should be balanced against the need to provide food for a growing global population, as well as the need to protect natural resources for future generations. We support government and stakeholder efforts to achieve that balance.

In terms of biofuels trade, Cargill favors market-driven policies that encourage gradual change, reliability and stability—rather than policies which impose artificial controls such as mandates, subsidies, export taxes, tariffs and other non-tariff barriers. We also support open trading arrangements that comply with World Trade Organization guidelines.