"Brazil is willing to transfer the necessary technology, especially to African countries. By the way, we are already doing so. One example is the presence of Embrapa in Accra, the capital of Ghana," said Lula

Lula also mentioned the importance of wealthy nations participating and investing in the production process for new energy sources. "We do not want European countries to dismantle their agricultural structure in order to plant sugarcane. We want them to invest in biofuel production in impoverished countries that have land available, such as the African countries," he said.

"We are only going to conquer the challenges facing us if the international community works with solidarity and takes into consideration the full importance of the matter," he claimed.

According to Lula, partnership between rich and poor countries is going to generate development for both sides and reduce immigration. "As long as there are impoverished nations, there is also going to be nomad people seeking better opportunities," he stated.

The president underscored the need for fighting the disinformation of those who claim that biofuels will destroy forests and cause hunger worldwide. "This is distortion of information and prejudice, which in fact hides interests. Biofuels are far from being a panacea, the solution to all social, environmental and economic problems. Nevertheless, they may help us reconcile development and respect to the environment," he stated.

With regard to generating jobs and income, reducing unsustainable standards of consumption and catering to the international demand for new sources of energy, Lula mentioned the example of Brazil. "We have invited the whole world to become acquainted with the concrete results of 30 years' work in Brazil. Thanks to lots of effort, hard work, and funds applied to research," he asserted.

According to the president, the attendance of 92 foreign delegations goes to show that the topic has finally entered the spotlight worldwide.

"Until a short while ago, the food crisis was the only topic under discussion. Now, the world is faced with an even greater and more devastating crisis. At the G-20 summit, in Washington, we decided to carry out joint action in a coordinated manner so as to minimize the crisis. We can no longer cover up other serious problems involving hunger, poverty and climate change," he said.

According to Lula, "diversifying the means for energy production is a pressing need for wealthy and developing nations. This summit launched a discussion on regulations and technical parameters. The world must allow for biofuels to turn into a commodity, so that they can be produced and exported to a greater number of countries," he stated. To the president, "many people have not understood yet that consumption standards must change. Our life is fleeting, but we are reborn in our children and grandchildren."

Lula concluded his address by mentioning the discovery of a two-billion-barrel oil reserve, announced this weekend by Petrobras. "This will not divert any of the attention from biofuels. Drilling for oil is expensive. A single platform costs around US$ 2 billion. Imagine the difference between that and producing biofuels, in which a small farmer can plant his own 'petroleum' in a 1-centimetre hole and, at the same, reduce gas emissions," he compared.

The governor of the state of São Paulo, José Serra, who also attended the closing of the conference, said that the issue of biofuels, given its environmental repercussions, is of interest to the whole planet, especially big cities. "Compared with gasoline, they reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 90% and do not emit methane gas," he stated.

Serra claimed that "even though biofuels are the key for sustainable development, the United States continue to adopt protectionist regulations, imposing a barrier of US$ 0.30 per liter, which is their production cost. In other words, they are 100% shielded." The governor also said that, furthermore, production of ethanol from maize is much more expensive, and "will continue to be, the use of technology notwithstanding."

To Serra, ensuring environmental conditions is among the concerns of Brazil. "Here in the state of São Paulo, agreements have been signed for putting an end to forest burning, promoting the zoning of sugarcane so as to guarantee diversity to agriculture in the state, and creating a research center turned to bioenergy, which will soon be implemented in partnership with the private sector," he said.

The International Conference on Biofuels, promoted by the government of Brazil, started last Monday, November 17, and ended Friday, November 21.

Anba

"We analyzed the Brazilian model so as to see in which countries it might be reproduced. The use of biofuels as we imagine it is a win, win, win strategy. The environment wins, the commerce wins, and development wins too," said Puri.

The biofuels sector, according to Puri, is a great opportunity, because it is new and dynamic. "What we are doing is try and help developing countries. We help nations to choose the correct model, and all of that needs to go hand in hand with food security," he said.

According to the relater, the commercial system must be open. "The rules and policies of the WTO (World Trade Organization) are still too local. There must also be a revision of taxes on some markets, as well as the issue of subsidies, which lead to an even greater imbalance between wealthy nations and developing ones," she said.

"Agroenergy and biofuels represent a shift in paradigms, a coming together of different people, setting new guidelines for sustainable development and peace promotion," said Roberto Rodrigues, president of the Superior Agribusiness Council at the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp) and former Brazilian minister of Agriculture.

According to Rodrigues, there is a widespread consensus regarding the need for seeking understanding among those interested in production of biofuel, which is not a commodity yet, therefore has no international pricing.

"The whole issue involves various aspects. It has to do with institutional models, technology, mandatory mixing of ethanol, and it also involves the logistical and infrastructure issue, as well as tariff-related issues," he said.

Global Warming

"Global warming is a general concern. We must discuss the problem to the maximum. We are holding meetings in Brazil and in South America seeking sustainability standards, with more jobs, more opportunities. We are developing standards for biofuels production with all of the known players involved," said Charlotte Opal, head of secretariat for the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels of the Lausanne Federal Polytechnics School, in Switzerland.

To the president at the São Paulo Sugarcane Agroindustry Union (Unica), Marcos Jank, the world currently faces two problems: oil scarcity and global warming.

"Presently, there are over 50 forums discussing biofuels around the world. The matter is so present because it stands on social, environmental and economic pillars," said Jank.

"We have people working in the United States and in Brussels. We have developed folders and ads in newspapers and magazines. We receive approximately 340 requests for interviews a day. The new thing is that Europe and the United States have decided to invest in the segment," he said.

With regard to the rules for trade, Corrado Clini, director general for Research and Development at the Ministry of Environment of Italy, claimed that we must use the rationale of global warming, of climate change, so as to change the rules of the WTO concerning biofuels.

According to him, it is still difficult to introduce bioenergy into a national conference. "And this is not just a matter of information, it is a political issue," he said.

As to sustainability, Clini claimed that consensus must be reached in order for a global market to be built. "It takes a global movement for lands to be used in a way that will reduce CO2 emissions. I hope that the European Union and Brazil will be able to create a common market in which to work. We are unable to meet the goal of 10% reduction by 2020 and we are going to need to import. That is good news to Brazil," he ensured.

The International Conference on Biofuels started last Monday, November 17, and will close this Friday (November 21) at the Hyatt Hotel, in the city of São Paulo.

Delegations from 92 countries participated, and approximately 3,000 have enrolled in order to watch the debates. The meeting is a contribution to the international discussion on the challenges and opportunities posed by biofuels, and is an important occasion for approaching, in an objective manner, issues pertaining to biofuels, such as energy security, sustainable production and use, agriculture, industrial processing, as well as issues pertaining to specifications and technical standards, international trade, climate change and the future of biofuels.

The meeting is attended by government officials, international organizations, parliament members, the scientific and academic community, the civil society and NGOs, among others. All of the UN member countries were invited.

The conference was organized by the Interministerial Working Group, integrated by the Ministry of Foreign Relations; the Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration; the Ministry of Mines and Energy; the Ministry of Agriculture; the Ministry of Environment; the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade; the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Agrarian Development.

Service

www.biofuels2008.com/br/index.php

Anba

The ethanol industry of the United States, he explained, is currently unable to compete in the international market, because it is not as efficient as that of Brazil. "The tropical countries have a competitive advantage," he said.

Attentive to the matter, the joint executive director at the International Energy Agency (IEA), Richard Jones, advised that care must be taken when dealing with the issue. According to him, there is an apparent conflict in the discourse that calls for the formation of a group of producer countries that will ensure the supply of ethanol to the international market and the condition of competitors among these countries themselves.

The president at Petrobras' biofuels subsidiary, Alan Kardec Pinto, gave a suggestion: foreign companies should invest in ethanol production in Brazil, thus ensuring the supply of markets in a competitive and profitable manner.

Card

A product turned specifically to micro, small and medium sized businesses, the Card of the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES Card) achieved in October its best performance since it started operating, in 2003. For the first time, transactions in a single month exceeded 100 million reais (US$ 43.4 million). The figure, of 110 million reais (US$ 47.8 million), is 20% higher than recorded in September.

Also compared with the previous month, the number of operations grew 12%, having totaled 7,195 (in the accumulated result this year, there were over 50,000 so far). Average transactions per day, in turn, have grown 18%, totaling over 4.8 million reais (US$ 2 million) per business day. By the same token, licensing requests by new manufacturers (385) and distributors (353) were also record highs, representing growth of 14% and 70%, respectively.

According to projections based on the figures available so far, the BNDES Card should close the year of 2008 with total transactions worth 820 million reais (US$ 356.4 million), more than the initial estimate, of 750 million reais (US$ 326.1 million), and presenting growth of approximately 60% in comparison with 2007.

SOS Caribbean

The National Food Supply Company (Conab) is shipping the first load of food for humanitarian aid to the countries in the Caribbean. The shipment includes 600 tons of processed rice, out of the Brazilian government's regular stocks, and 900 tons of powdered milk, of the Program for Acquisition of Family Farming Agriculture (PAA).

The initiative complies with provisory measure 444/08, which authorizes the donation of 47,000 tons of food to the governments of Cuba, Haiti, Honduras and Jamaica, to supply the populations affected by recent climate problems.

According to the superintendent at Conab in Rio Grande do Sul, Carlos Manoel Farias, shipments should include 500 kilograms of vegetable seeds. "Conab coordinated the entire action, commanded by the ministries of Agriculture, Foreign Relations and Agrarian Development, in partnership with the government of Spain, which is going to make viable the transport of other products," he said.

Cooperatives

A study by the Market management department at the Organization of Brazilian Cooperatives (OCB) reveals that, despite the crisis, direct exports of Brazilian cooperatives registered growth of 27.5% in the accumulated result from January to September 2008, in comparison with the same period in 2007.

Sector sales to the foreign market totaled US$ 3.13 billion, whereas in the previous year they had totaled US$ 2.46 billion. The volume exported, in turn, dropped to 5.63 million tons, against 6.48 million tons in 2007.

The sector trade balance presented a surplus of US$ 2.71 billion, with growth of 20.46% over the months of January to September of the previous year. In the same period, Brazilian cooperatives imported US$ 419.49 million. The result is a consequence, mainly, of trade of products in the soy complex, in the sugar and alcohol sector and in the beef sector.

The OCB study shows that the main destination for products of Brazilian cooperatives was China, which represented 12% of total exports, for a total of US$ 377.21 million. In the same period, in 2007, the total was 10.58% of sales, for a value of US$ 259.96 million.

The increases in exports to China was due to sales of products in the soy complex, with special attention to soy in grain (24.29%) and soy oil (335.50%), and edible products of animal origin (52.13%).

Them Always Them

Figures supplied by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) show that Europe and the United States invested US$ 3 trillion to save their banks, responsible for the economic crisis that scares the world, but were unable to deploy even a small share of that total for hunger alleviation worldwide.

During that period, according to the Unctad, funds for aiding the development of more impoverished countries were reduced by up to 40%. To the secretary general at the Unctad, Supachai Panitchpadki, aid to developing countries cannot disappear as a consequence of the economic crisis.

Downhill

According to Panitchpadki, the crisis should lead to a 10% reduction in purchases of vehicles, electronic products and textiles in industrialized countries, representing a reduction of US$ 95 billion in exports by developing nations. He believes that the UN must participate in the elaboration of solutions to the economic crisis that plagues the planet.

On the other hand, the International Labour Organization (ILO) guarantees that the current economic instability is going to leave more than 20 million people unemployed, and 40 million in extreme poverty.

Anba

Debating theme "Biofuels as a driving force of sustainable development", the meeting should bring together representatives of governments of 50 countries, multilateral and academic institutions, companies and organizations in the civil society.

According to the acting director of the Sugarcane Department at the Ministry of Agriculture, José Nilton de Souza Vieira, the event should discuss how biofuels may be inserted into the global economy, especially in the transportation sector.

"We have several experiences [in the area of alternative energies], but the hydrogen fueled engine, for example, is still something very distant and electric vehicles tend to have too short autonomy," said Vieira. In this respect, biofuels become a faster, cheaper and less polluting alternative to be adopted in commercial scale by other countries.

He pointed out, however, that for the expansion of agro energy, it is necessary to have safety, i.e., for the country that decides to use ethanol, for example, to have a guarantee for supply of raw material for the fuel that does not occupy areas turned to the cultivation of foods, nor to invade forests or harm the environment as a whole.

The question of safety should be one of the central points of the conference. According to Vieira, biofuels have not come to replace oil, but to serve as a complementary item in the energy matrix. In this respect, the sustainable use of energy depends greatly on specific conditions in each country.

He mentions countries in Africa, where the sector may be successful. "The local production should allow these countries to have greater offer of energy on the domestic market and generate conditions for development," he pointed out. In Brazil itself the use of biodiesel in replacement of oil diesel is considered a viable alternative to produce electricity for distant communities, especially in the Amazon.

Vieira explained that generators fueled by biofuel are cheaper and affect the forest less than the installation of transmission lines to transport energy from other areas of the country. "This is in the concept of easy access to energy," he said.

According to the agriculture ministry director, there are currently over 100 countries that plant sugarcane, and many of them may be as competitive as Brazil in production of ethanol. The challenge, according to him, is, first of all, to convince the international community that agroenergy is safe in economic and environmental terms; and, in second place, providing access to technology to those interested in developing the sector.

In this respect, the meeting should include international fostering agencies, like the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Organizations like this one, according to Vieira, may help in the organization of an international market, selecting countries with potential for production for implementation of pilot projects and later expansion of the sector.

With this kind of international coordination it will be possible to transform products like ethanol into international commodities, as, even with over 30 years' experience in the large-scale use of alcohol as a fuel, Brazil cannot supply the global demand through transfer of know-how, as within the country itself the search for professionals is very high.

"The matter must be discussed within a global perspective," stated the director at the Ministry, pointing out that there is no way for Brazil alone to organize an international biofuel market.

Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva launched the idea for the conference, during the Assembly General of the United Nations in 2007, when agroenergy suffered intense attack, especially from European countries, being accused for promotion of inflation of global products.

Lula is scheduled to open the event and the Ministry should present a new agricultural zoning plan for sugarcane, as anticipated by ANBA, to show that in the case of Brazil ethanol should present no risk to production of food, nor to the environment.

The study shows that the country has at least 40 million hectares available for the cultivation of sugarcane, without affecting sensitive ecosystems or reserves of any nature, be they natural or indigenous. This is four times more than the area used for plantation of sugarcane today, which is currently around 9 million hectares.

Vieira pointed out that the area on which soy is cultivated in the country is much greater, between 22 million and 23 million hectares, with the culture of the oleaginous plant being more aggressive to the environment than sugarcane. Even if sugarcane advanced into ecosystems considered sensitive, its impact would not be disastrous. The total area of the Amazon, for example, is 360 million hectares. That is, if the whole cultivated area of Brazil were transferred there today, it would only cover 3% of the Amazon territory.

Apart from that, the study shows that the regions with greater aptitude for cultivation of soy, due to characteristics like soil, are the Midwest, the Northeast of Minas Gerais, the West of the state of São Paulo, the West of Bahia, part of Tocantins, the South of Maranhão and Piauí­, areas that are not part of the Amazon.

Thus, according to Vieira, Brazil may expand its agricultural frontier by at least 110 million hectares for the cultivation of other crops and guarantee the production of foods, also without causing great environmental impact, nor compromising cattle raising, as part of the land is currently used for grazing.

And with the current area, Brazil is already the main producer and exporter of sugarcane ethanol, and also competes with the United States for global leadership in the sector, although in the US the fuel is produced from maize.

Production of ethanol in Brazilian is around 27 billion liters, which is enough to supply the whole domestic demand and even generate a surplus for export. That is in a country where the consumption of fuel alcohol this year should exceed that of petrol. According to information supplied by the Ministry, sugarcane answers to 16% of the Brazilian energy matrix, being the second most important item, losing only to oil and its products.

The Brazilian fleet of flexible fueled vehicles, which may be powered by petrol, alcohol or any mixture of the two, is estimated at 6 million units, according to the Ministry. Apart from that, all the petrol used in the country has 25% ethanol mixed in.

The conference should be divided into two parts. The plenary sessions, open to the public, begin today and end on Wednesday. The panels will include five central themes: Biofuels and Energetic Security; Biofuels and Climate Change; Biofuels and Sustainability; Biofuels and Innovation; and Biofuels and the International Market.

In the second part, to take place on Thursday and Friday, the same themes should be discussed, but just by government members. President Lula should also close the event.

Service

Conference site: www.biofuels2008.com/en/index.php

Anba

The study should be disclosed at the opening of the international conference on biofuels "International Conference on Biofuels: Biofuels as a driving force of sustainable development", to take place from the November 17 to 21.

"The study is going to show the areas for expansion of agriculture in the country, without including the Amazon, the Pantanal (wetlands in the west of the country), native Indian areas, forests, cities, etc.," said, in an interview to foreign correspondents, ambassador André Amado, undersecretary general for Energy and Top-End Technology at the Itamaraty, who is responsible for the event.

According to him, the research is effectively going to reveal the areas to be used by several crops, including sugarcane for production of ethanol, without this implying in deforestation. The study shows land that is currently underused. "It will be a great advance in this area, as details are lacking," he said.

According to figures disclosed by the ministry, the country has 65 million hectares available for the expansion of sugarcane, being 37 million now in grazing land. In early October, the minister of Agriculture of Brazil, Reinhold Stephanes, said that the cultivation of sugarcane should expand into these grazing grounds, which are well distributed throughout Brazil.

Stephanes added that over the next eight years, Brazil should need from four to five million hectares to double production of sugarcane. He also said that zoning is a system to generate compatibility between food and biofuel production and respect to the environment.

From time to time, production of biofuels is the target of criticism of other countries due to the fear that it may occupy areas turned to food and may also boost deforestation. For over a year now the government of Brazil has been working on showing that this is not the case in Brazil. The conference this month was announced by president Lula at the UN General Assembly in 2007.

According to André Amado, the target of the conference is to objectively discuss the potential of biofuels. In Brazil, ethanol has been broadly used in vehicles for over 30 years and the country dominates the whole chain of production and use of the product.

The ambassador pointed out that it is possible to prove on black and white that biofuels are currently the cleanest and cheapest forms for generation of electric energy.

"We do not plan to convince people to import ethanol from Brazil, but to export the idea that biofuels are currently the cleanest source of energy in the world," he said. "Also due to the fact that domestic demand in Brazil should reduce the possibility of exports," he explained.

The ambassador added that the sector productive chain may represent a development alternative for poor nations, especially in Africa. "There are African countries whose annual consumption of energy is similar to that of Iguatemi Shopping center," he said, referring to a traditional shopping mall in São Paulo. "Imagine the importance an ethanol mill would have for a country like that," he declared.

Amado recalled that Brazil and the United States, the two main global producers of fuel alcohol, are already working on a program for promotion of ethanol in developing nations. Today the project promotes initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean, but at a second moment it should be expanded to Senegal and Guinea Bissau, in Africa. "We want to share what we know about biofuels with other developing nations," he said.

Since the release of the idea of the conference, international economic conditions have changed. At the end of last year, the price of oil was rising, there was great inflationary pressure on food and also fear of lack of supply and the financial crisis had not yet caused the recent global financial losses.

The ambassador pointed out, however, that the discussion about biofuels is not conjectural, but structural. That is, the importance does not depend on what the main topic of international talks is. From last year to date, several countries, mainly in the European Union, have lightened their considerations regarding ethanol, especially with regard to the product made in Brazil.

The conference should include topics like energy safety, climate change, sustainability – including food safety and generation of income -, innovation – including the development of second generation fuels, like cellulose ethanol – and the discussion of commercial, technical and social and environmental rules.

Also, together with the US, Brazil is already working on the creation of a standard for ethanol so that it may be treated as a commodity. These talks, according to Amado, include other countries, like South Africa and India. According to him, the topic is also being discussed by other governments, including the European Union, and by the private sector.

In this area, another question considered important and that should be discussed is the creation of an international organization turned exclusively to the energy sector, which currently does not exist. "We want there to be one," said the ambassador.

He pointed out that between 35 and 40 international delegations headed by ministers have already confirmed presence in the conference, and around 500 people have registered on the Internet to see the debates.

Service

www.biofuels2008.mre.gov.br

Anba – www.anba.com.br

After relevant suggestions have been incorporated, the plan will be sent to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in November for approval. The Forum of Climate Change is an umbrella organization aiming to stimulate public awareness and dialogue, and incorporate climate change issues into public policies

"Brazil has done its part in the mitigation of climate change and is determined and committed to doing more, using its full national capacity as part of an overall effort to combat climate change," says the plan, released on September 29.

The recommendations are organized into four lines of action: mitigation; vulnerability, impact and adaptation; research and development; and empowerment and divulgation.

Goals include getting 7,000 megawatts of power from renewable energy between 2008 and 2010, increasing production of ethanol from 25.6 billion liters in 2008 to 53.2 billion liters by 2017, and preventing the release of 570 million tons of carbon dioxide between 2008 and 2017 by using biofuels.

Targets will be met by promoting sustainable development in the industrial and agricultural sectors, maintaining a high proportion of renewable energy in the electricity production, encouraging the use of biofuels in the transportation sector, and reducing deforestation.

Other elements include a moratorium on the selling of soybeans that come from deforested areas of the Brazilian Amazon, and the elimination of ozone-damaging chlorofluorocarbon gases (CFCs) with the replacement of one million old refrigerators per year.

"This initiative is important because it helps to incorporate climate issues into all government programs and projects," said Suzana Kahn Ribeiro, secretary of climate change and environment quality of the Brazilian Ministry of Environment. She adds that another important task of the new plan is to foster public awareness about climate change and its impacts on Brazil.

To support the plan, the Brazilian government will create economic, technical, political and institutional mechanisms, such as laws and funding, over the next few years.

The plan will be delivered in phases, beginning in 2009. "The National Plan on Climate Change is a dynamic project. During its execution, we can add new goals and strategies if necessary," says Ribeiro.

Brazil's National Plan on Climate Change, in Portuguese:

http://www.mma.gov.br/index.php?ido=conteudo.monta&idEstrutura=169

SciDev

According to a decree signed by the Ministries of Environment, and Science and Technology, research centers interested in the field of study have until September 25 to present their proposals to the National Council of Scientific and Technological Development.

The Brazilian government is willing to finance projects based on the following:

* The development of low-cost micro-algae farming techniques that may be used in oil production as a raw material for biodiesel production;

* Studies assessing the potential of different micro-algae types;

* Studies on the economic feasibility of farmed micro algae processes for biodiesel production;

* Research of cost-effective and efficient micro-algae collection and subsequent oil extraction processes.

The selected projects will be announced in October and financing will be released for the projects in December.

Brazil already obtains bio-diesel from oil-producing plants such as castor, sunflower, soy, and palm and is a world leader in ethanol from sugar cane.

The government managed oil and gas corporation Petrobras recently inaugurated the first of its three vegetable fuel processing industrial plants.

The Brazilian Government intends to incorporate new raw materials, such as seaweed, that today already function as an experimental source for biodiesel production in various countries including the United States, Japan, and Argentina.

The State of Rio Grande do Norte Agricultural Research Company (EMPARN) to the northeast of the country is already developing large-scale seaweed-based biodiesel production techniques. According to company studies, seaweed's bio-fuel production capacity is 25 times that of any other vegetable. (FIS)

A "significant" increase in the investment volume scheduled for the period ranging from 2009 to 2013 is forecasted. The information was supplied by the president of the new Petrobras subsidiary, Alan Kardec.

Kardec assumed the direction of the holding company last July 29, in the city of Candeias, state of Bahia. On that day, during the meeting of the Board of Managers, it was decided that the current plan needed revision, and that a strategic plan for the biofuel area from 2009 to 2013 must be devised quickly.

To the president at the holding, it is still too early to disclose figures. However, he asserted that, after the revision, there is going to be a "significant" increase of investment in the sector – the forecasted total in the 2008-2012 strategic plan is US$ 1.5 billion.

"It is evident that funds cannot remain at its current level, because they also include capital for the construction of two alcohol pipes, which should single-handedly absorb 46% of total investment."

Alan Kardec claimed that, taking into account what is expected of the new company, whose production goal is of nearly 1 billion liters of biodiesel until 2012, a greater investment volume than the current one will surely be required. "Thus, it is safe to say that investment will be greater."

ABr

In order to take a step further, the government is going to promote a global conference on the subject in São Paulo next November, counting on the participation of specialists and authorities from all over the world.

"Biofuels have become a favorite subject of the international press. Thus, we are witnessing an increasingly heated debate about a theme that is very natural to us, because we grew up with it," said the head of the Energy Department at the Brazilian Foreign Office (Itamaraty), Rodrigo Corrêa do Lago, one of the organizers of the event.

If the subject is natural for the Brazilians, who have been making large-scale use of ethanol as a fuel for over 30 years now, the same does not hold true for other countries. According to Lago, even among specialists, there is lack of knowledge regarding the subject, which became evident after the sector gained international attention.

"When we discuss the theme outside Brazil, lots of people are perplexed because they do not possess basic information about it," stated the diplomat. "They think, for instance, that it is difficult to mix ethanol into gasoline. In Japan, for example, we heard people who believed that over 3% of alcohol mixed into gasoline would make a vehicle explode," he said.

In Brazil, 25% of ethanol is mixed into gasoline. Besides, the country uses pure alcohol as a fuel. Flexible fueled vehicles, which currently answer to the overwhelming majority of vehicles manufactured by the national industry, will run on gasoline, ethanol, or any combination of the two.

"Many Europeans do not believe it when we say that autos imported from the European Union itself already come prepared to run on 25% of ethanol," stated Lago.

The diplomat also adds that there is a certain amount of prejudice, especially in Europe, about technological advances promoted by developing countries. To that extent, he explains that Brazilian progress in the field of ethanol is regarded as "exotic at most", and that there are no Brazilian authors in the bibliography of studies on the theme conducted by Europeans.

In addition to the technical issues, Brazil wants to rationalize the discussion about the relation between biofuels and foodstuffs. Agroenergy has been singled out by countries and international organizations as one of the villains responsible for rising food prices on a global scale, and the Brazilian government has been putting on an effort worldwide to explain that, in the case of the country, the sector does not compete for space with food production.

Brazilian ethanol is manufactured from sugarcane, rather than from raw materials also used for feeding humans and animals, such as corn, which is used for alcohol fuel production in the United States. Furthermore, Brazil still has a vast area to be used for all types of crops, thus there is no need for sugarcane to take over other crops or preservation areas.

According to Lago, there is not an exclusive multilateral organization turned to biofuels, therefore the issue ends up being discussed at different forums, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Energy Agency (IEA). In other words, the debate ends up not including all of its aspects at once, such as agriculture, energy and environment.

"We want to spread awareness of that, and of the fact that the dialogue must include different fields of knowledge, its various aspects and idiosyncrasies," stated the diplomat. In his opinion, the subject cannot be made to look simple, as biofuels production depends on the reality of each country: for some it might be a great opportunity, whereas for others there might be spatial limitations, environmental restrictions or risks to food production.

Another matter that Brazil wants to demystify is the notion that biofuels compete with oil. From the Brazilian vantage point, biofuels are never going to replace mineral fuels in the global energy matrix. What can happen is that the mixing of alcohol into gasoline, or of biodiesel into diesel, might slow down the pace of oil consumption.

Initially, the conference held in São Paulo was supposed to be a forum for discussion of more technical matters, such as the international standardization of ethanol, aiming to turn it into a commodity.

The realization that there is widespread lack of knowledge regarding the subject, though, led the Brazilian government to shift the focus of the event, making it more didactic. "We must disseminate information in order to give rise to informed dialogue," claimed Lago.

To that extent, the Brazilian government wants to bring together, from November 17th to 21st, not only ministers and other government officials, but also specialists from different regions of the world, in order to promote a public debate. Lago stated that the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) is even producing a book on the subject.

"We are going to work hard to make precise, honest information available," he said. Representatives of all UN member states are being invited, including heads of state and government.

Anba – www.anba.com.br

Addressing the United Nations Food and Agriculture (FAO) meeting in Rome he also rejected that ethanol production cut food output, "biofuels are not the villains," on the contrary "they are an important instrument for generating income and creating jobs" helping countries to combat food and energy insecurity.

A group of analysts and environmentalists have blamed biofuels for part of the increase in costs and food shortages that have sparked riots in more than 30 countries. Diversion of land from food crops to biofuels has contributed 30% of the rise, according to the Washington-based International Food Policy Research.

Lula insisted that to really understand the true reasons behind the current food crisis "it is essential to sweep aside the smoke that certain powerful lobbies are generating with the purpose of attributing responsibility on ethanol production for the recent food inflation."

Brazilian cultivation of sugar cane for ethanol accounts for 1% of Brazil's 340 million hectares of arable land, Lula said. Plantations haven't encroached on land used for food cultivation or on the Amazon rainforest, he added.

Ethanol from sugar cane gives off 8.3 times more energy than is needed to produce it, while for corn the ratio is 1.5 times, Lula said.

"I don't favor producing ethanol from corn or other food crops, and I doubt that anyone would go hungry to fill up their car's fuel tank."

Two of the main causes of the surge in food prices are record oil prices and "absurdly protectionist farm policies in rich countries," the Brazilian leader said in his address.

"Subsidies create dependency, break down entire production systems and provoke hunger and poverty. It is high time to do away with them," Lula insisted. "It offends me to see fingers pointed against clean biofuels – fingers tainted with oil and coal"

Mercopress