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Food prices summit: PM must change direction on biofuels now
22 April 2008
Responding to today's food prices summit in London, which is being hosted by Gordon Brown, Friends of the Earth's Food Campaigner Vicki Hird said:
"Gordon Brown is right to be concerned about the impact of biofuels on food prices and the environment. Evidence is growing that they cause more harm than good. UK and European targets for increasing biofuel use by adding it to our petrol must be scrapped. The Prime Minister must do more to tackle transport pollution by improving public transport and insisting that the EU doubles the fuel-efficiency of new cars by 2020."
"Food production must be revolutionised to prevent a global catastrophe. We must stop putting the profits of agri-business ahead of the welfare of millions of poor people around the world. This means developing food and trade policies that put people and the planet first and abandoning damaging false solutions such as biofuels and GM."
Notes
A poll published by Friends of the Earth last week revealed that 78 per cent of the public agreed that European Governments should make vehicle manufacturers double the fuel efficiency on new cars by 2020.
A new report published today by friends of the Earth reveals that attempts to use certification schemes to reduce the widespread environmental and social problems caused by growing crops for fuels and animal feeds are bound to fail.
A global agricultural assessment (PDF† ), endorsed by 400 scientists and adopted by 50 governments all over the world, was released last week. Its key message is that small-scale farmers and agro-ecological methods provide the way forward to avert the current food crisis and meet the needs of local communities.
†To view PDF files you will need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader. Visually impaired users can get extra help with these documents from access.adobe.com.
If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.
Published by Friends of the Earth Trust
Last modified: Jul 2008
