Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture No. 4/08
Agrofuel boom or doom? Opportunities and constraints for agrofuels in developing countries
Manfred Zeller and Martin Grass
University of Hohenheim, Germany
Abstract
Progress towards substituting renewable energy sources for fossil
fuels can contribute to the mitigation of climate change. Biomass may
provide one such source, in addition to wind, solar, and water.
However, the extent to which agrofuels, such as biodiesel and
bioethanol, can sustainably replace fossil fuels will partly depend on
whether their current competition with the traditional food, feed and
fiber sectors can be substantially reduced. This paper describes the
production and policy trends for biodiesel and bioethanol in developed
and developing countries and analyses data on the production, social,
and environmental costs. Agrofuels hold a number of opportunities, but
also present formidable constraints, especially for poorer,
food-deficient developing countries. We conclude that in order to
address the constraints and capitalize on the opportunities that
agrofuels hold for sustainable development, more investments in
socio-economic and technological research, especially for agrofuels
produced from cellulosic materials and agricultural byproducts and
waste, are required. Furthermore, policies need to be improved to
better address the constraints and opportunities for agrofuels with
respect to equity, efficiency and environmental constraints.
Keywords: climate change, agrofuels, developing countries, food security
JEL: O13, Q4, Q13, Q54
Vol. 47 (2008), No. 4: 285-305