Food Security

 Over one billion people in the world still suffer from hunger. As the development of biofuels continues there are many opportunities and risks affecting the capacity of men and women to have physical, social and economic access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs.

The impact of biofuel production is context-specific and will vary according to feedstock, technology and country characteristics. Food availability could be hampered by biofuel production since large scale use of land for the production of feedstock could pose a threat to the use of that same land and water resources for food production. This pressure on food availability could lessen if food and energy production systems were better integrated and as second generation biofuels produced from lignocellulosic biomass (grasses and other biomass) develop. This cellulose-rich biomass could be grown on marginal and degraded lands that do not compete with food crops, but it remains to be seen whether this will be economically viable. Further, seemingly "abandoned" land often provides important subsistence functions in times of stress to vulnerable households.

There is growing international consensus that the increased demand of food crop feedstocks for the development of liquid biofuels for transport has contributed to recent commodity price hikes putting a further strain on food security. Rising food prices are good news for farmers selling the commodity. However, only a small minority of poor rural households, including farming households, have surplus to sell and hence rising prices are an immediate threat to food security.

If in the medium term a continued growth in biofuel demand will help reverse the trend of falling commodity prices experienced over the last few decades, this could help revitalise the agricultural sector. New demand can bring new income opportunities for poor farmers, and provide incentives for intensification, leading to increased food production and improved livelihoods as long as production methods are sustainable.

FAO's Work

FAO has been carrying out significant work on the links between food security and bioenergy development. The most important recent initiative is the Bioenergy and Food Security Project (BEFS). The BEFS project was launched in January 2007, to mainstream food security concerns into assessments of bioenergy potential. Analysis and field activities will be targeted to support sustainable rural development and food security initiatives. The project is currently working in three countries - Peru, Tanzania and Thailand.

Go to the BEFS web site.

Building on the findings of BEFS, the Bioenergy and Food Security Criteria and Indicators (BEFSCI) project aims to develop detailed principles, criteria and indicators on sustainable bioenergy production that safeguards food security. A first draft of these principles, criteria and indicators will be discussed at two technical consultations that will take place at FAO Headquarters in Rome in November 2009 and in early 2010. These will then be validated through international multi-stakeholder consultations, and subsequently field-tested.

 Go to the BEFSCI web site.