AlHijjah 1, 1433, Oct 17, 2012, SPA -- New EU rules to limit how much food can be made into biofuels are "not perfect" and make it harder to achieve overall goals on switching to low carbon energy, European Commissioners said on Wednesday. But they insisted the proposals sent out the right signal to the biofuel industry, which would have to move on to new-generation fuels that do not compete with demand for food, Reuters reported. The Commission announced a major policy shift in September, saying it planned to limit crop-based biofuels to 5 percent of consumption, as part of a goal to draw 10 percent of transport fuel from renewable sources, mainly biodiesel and bioethanol. On Wednesday, it formally published the proposal, which biofuel producers have said could devastate their business and green campaigners say fails to address the problem. "Our analysis in the Commission is that it's still possible to achieve the 10 percent target, but if you were to ask me whether this proposal will make it easier, I would answer 'no'," Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard told Reuters in an interview. Hedegaard and Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger earlier told a news conference that the proposal was "not perfect". Science had moved on from when the Commission agreed the 10 percent biofuel target in 2008 and as knowledge increased, further changes could be necessary, the Commissioners said. The reason some first-generation biofuels are now considered problematic is that they can displace food production into new areas, forcing forest clearance and draining of peatland. The displacement is referred to as ILUC (indirect land-use change). In some cases, first-generation biofuels can be worse for the environment than fossil fuels. Another human cost is the possibility of adding to food price inflation. "For us, in rich Europe, we have to consider do we want to use scarce food resources for producing fuel or should we be careful to try to use other stuff," Hedegaard told reporters. "We have enough knowledge to make that choice." -- SPA
