Rush for biofuels threatens starvation on a global scale

This report is another knee jerk reaction and overstatement pandering to the green lobby. The situation is more complicated than that, the weather and natural disasters and government interference in the food supply have to be taken into account. The sudden wealth and buying power of the newly emerging nations need to be taken into account as well, bearing in mind that prior to the move towards bio-fuel there was a surplus of food.

Dave Madley, Alicante, Spain

What a relief to hear the new Chief Scientist say that food supply is more important than climate change and to emphasise the major threat from population increase.

Perhaps we shall also hear soon about the major scientific study that forecasts a 20% increase in crop growth which will result fron the projected increase in carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere.

Now all we need is for a Chief Economist to tell us how we can have economic growth without population increase. The present government welcomes immigrants not out of concern for their wellbeing but because they are fodder for our economy.

P Douglass, Dundee, Scotland

too many people on the planet. We're doomed

John Ware, London,

The 'green' paradise is being shown to be scotch mist. Increase bio-fuel is the cry, reduced food production is the cost. Increase the amount of organic food is the cry, reduced food production is the cost. Don't use gm food is the cry, reduced food profuction is the cost. The green ideal, of which bio-fuel is just one aspect, is unsustainable in the modern world. One day there will be alternatives to oil based fuels, just are there are in electrcity production, unfortunately the 'green' way is just so much pie in the sky, just as in electricity production.

David Leslie, Perth, Scotland

The article incorrectly says that 6 million are born every month. Things are much worse, the 6 million is the NET increase in the world population.
As to Mr Bush and biofuels, I suggest readers just take a look at a middle east map. The answer is simple, it is called---THE STRAITS OF HORMUZ!

David Vinter, Louth, Lincs., UK.

The green lobby is not interested in the human race-period. Therefore it stands to reason that anything that is counter productive to people is OK with them. To coin a phrase ' and decrease the surplus population ". I wonder when the geniuses that thought putting food in a car was better than in a stomach will figure that out? The energy used to make, transport, store ( special faclities, cannot use pipelines, new refineries, but not for oil), biofuels is more than the energy produced. Not a problem, these are the same clowns that tell us we are all going to be crispy critturs due to Global Warming. Very difficult to believe this in the coldest winter on record.

Desmond Taylor, Houston, USA Tx

If we stopped growing crops to feed to animals, there would be a lot more crops to eat and provide fuel. Once again, Paul McCartney is right that a vegetarian diet is the solution, or at least a good partial one. Check out www.GoVeg.com/eco for more info.

David Sellers, Norfolk, va

The desperate and costly search for alternative fuels is all down to the cowardice of world leaders. They dare not stand up to the powerful motoring lobbies and say that the days when everyone could selfishly expect to waste fuel, take up large areas of road space and pollute the environment by driving themselves - often with no passengers - where and when they like are over. The sooner we realise that many car trips are unnecessary or could be made on foot, by bike or by public transport, the better for the planet and the bulk of its population in the long term.

Barry, Wallington, UK

Food costs rising because of some idiotic obsession with biofuels (instead of developing decent petrol / diesel replacements)... that's why it's a very good time to put your money into the commodities market of wheat, corn and other such crops. You heard it here first.

Michael, Dover, UK

Once upon a time, about four weeks ago to be precise, I had never seen the two words 'elephant' and 'room' in the same sentence.

Now I have great difficulty avoiding this tiresome , tusker conjunction.

Bob, Northampton,

It is all very well the WFP saying that it is going to be a bonanza for farmers with the wheat prices rising - what they are not saying is that the prices of fertiliser which is applied to improve teh wheat growth has shot through the roof - almost quadruple in price since last year - to the wheat prices may be up but so are the overheads!

Poppy J, Worcester, UK

Mmm..also, the Americans are depleting underground water supplies in large areas of the Midwest. When it runs out, they will not be able to grow as much wheat or other crops.

Frank Upton, Solihull,

Biofuels (which are still only a small percentage of all cropland) are not the solution to transport energy needs, but they are being wrongly blamed for what is actually the problem of phenomenal population growth.

KK, London,

In addition to switchgrass is sugar beets. Sugar cane is better yet, but, needs the proper environment to grow. Corn is a pretty poor organic source as it'd carbons are stored in protein, not sugar. Another issue brought is up the idea of ZPG - zero population growth. Too many of anything isn't always a good idea. There is also alternative energy sources such as wind and solar. These are supplimental sources -i.e. don't produce huge amounts of energy, but, do suppliment conventional sources.

Wes Byrd, Iowa City, Iowa USA

Nearly a half-century ago, in high school chemistry class, we learned that alcohol lamps produced a "cool" flame (not so many Btu's). When this bio-fuel bid'ness first started showing up in the media, this writer was incredulous. The net Btu return on an alcohol crop is about 18%. There is not sufficient land-mass surface area upon the earth to provide even 25% of present energy demands.

Cultivating Switchgrass, or whatever, only takes that land out of food production. As a farmer and high school graduate, this writer immediately percieved that the bio-fuel matter was a hoax to pacify the profoundly ignorant public (who think that food originates at the market).

As for myself and my neighbors, we find that the exploding crop prices against the more exploding fuel, transportation and fertilizer prices result in a net-zero-gain (or even loss). Since 2000, fuel costs have almost quadrupled, but prices paid for crops haven't. You figure out where we are going...

Humbug.

Colonial Farmer, Red Oak, Texas

Corn is a terrible source for bio-fuel but algae is excellent. Corn = 20-25 gallons per acre; algae = almost 100,000 gallons per acre.

Bret, Grand Rapids, MI

There aer alternatives to the food sources they presently use. Here in the states we are not following up the developments of things like "switchweed". This is a weed that has no real use and would be perfect for this. In the states the problem is that big corn growers are all subsidized, so the profit is not only in growing and selling, but in the subsidy as well. Our congress refuses to remove this relict of the depression which benefits sosmething that did not exist then....big agri-business

Marty Price, Oakland, California