Environmental Groups: No Wheat for Biofuels

As a new study by the environmental umbrella organization Transport & Environment (T&E) shows, 10,000 tons of wheat are processed into ethanol for cars every day in Europe. This corresponds to 15 million loaves of bread. Ethanol is mixed into fuel E10 at ten percent and is supposed to make combustion engines more environmentally friendly. The NGO linked this finding with a call to stop the burning of wheat and other foodstuffs for biofuels and described the biofuel lobby's push to increase production as "immoral" in a time of acute global food shortages.

"Every year we burn millions of tons of wheat and other vital grains to power our cars. This is unacceptable in light of the global food crisis. Governments must urgently stop burning food in cars to relieve the pressure on critical supplies," demands Maik Marahrens, Biofuel Manager at T&E.

If wheat were removed from European biofuels, according to the study, more than 20 percent of the collapsed Ukrainian wheat shipments on the world market could be compensated. For countries like Egypt, which imports more than 60 percent of its wheat mainly from Russia and Ukraine, this extra market supply would be life-saving, according to the NGO.

A group of leading European non-governmental organizations, including T&E, appealed to EU governments to immediately stop using food for fuel. Ensuring a stable energy supply for people and the economy should not come at the expense of food security or lead to uncontrolled food price inflation, the group argues.

Doubling the cultivation areas replaces only 7% of oil imports

According to the responsible parties, the European biofuel lobby (ePure and the European Biodiesel Board) is increasingly demanding to replace Russian oil with biofuels from wheat, corn, barley, sunflowers, rapeseed, and other plant oils. This is despite the fact that food prices have risen dramatically after Putin's invasion of Ukraine, which has decimated the "granary of Europe". Ukraine and Russia together supply about a quarter of the world's traded wheat and barley, 15 percent of the corn, and over 60 percent of sunflower oil.

Even if Europe were to double its cultivation areas for biofuels - which would equate to at least ten percent of the EU's cultivation areas - this would only replace seven percent of the EU's oil imports from Russia. To replace all Russian oil imports with domestic biofuels, at least two-thirds of the EU's agricultural land would be required.

"The biofuel industry is stepping up its lobbying efforts to promote more grain such as wheat and corn as a substitute for Russian oil. In doing so, it cynically exploits people's concerns about fuel prices and places profit over food security. This is immoral while millions of people around the world cannot even afford a loaf of bread," criticizes Maik Marahrens.

ADAC recommends E10 as cheaper - and environmentally friendly

In contrast, the automotive club ADAC recently renewed an unconditional recommendation to refuel with E10 fuel with a ten percent ethanol content. This is also appropriate given the high fuel prices, as E10 has always been five to six cents cheaper per liter than the standard Otto fuel E5. E10 is also an environmental advancement, as environmentally sustainable crops used in the fuel can save up to three million tons of CO2 annually, and the blending is climate-neutral, according to the club. Additionally, fine dust and nitrogen oxide emissions would be reduced compared to conventional Otto fuel.

No competition for land? Regulations only for specific areas

Any potential competition for land would be prevented by the EU's Renewable Energy Directive or the national Biofuel Sustainability Ordinance, which set requirements for the protection of natural habitats and sustainable agriculture domestically and abroad. Thus, areas with high biodiversity value - such as rainforests, areas with high carbon content, or peat bogs - are protected. According to the German Bioethanol Industry Association, only around two percent of the arable land in Germany is used for the production of bioethanol used in road traffic. In addition, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), large areas are still available worldwide that can be used for biofuels without competing with food production.