The president of the World Bank made an appearance at the World Food Prize symposium Thursday on World Food Day and commented on world production of food and biofuels during a press conference.
Robert Zoellick noted that some biofuels are more efficient than others, like sugarcane ethanol in Brazil, and he believes that “biofuels in the future are going to be a critical component of a larger energy mix.” He also acknowledged the importance of creating the marketing framework which he says is “partly what some of the oilseeds-based and corn-based biofuels are about.”
He urges policy makers in the U.S. to consider some ways to change the structure of tariffs and subsidies for ethanol, such as having some “safety-valves” that would allow for the reduction of subsidies when prices reach certain levels.
Listen to Zoellick’s comments here:
[audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/world-food/wfp-08-zoellick-biofuels.mp3]
You can also download the audio with this link: Zoellick on Food and Fuel (mp3)