Efforts by the European Union to combat climate change threaten to cause higher food prices and suffering in poorer countries unless proposed safeguards are toughened, green campaigners have warned.
A leaked draft of the European Commission’s plan to boost biofuel and renewable energy use shows it would “fail to protect the poor or the environment” from the diversion of crops from food to fuel, Friends of the Earth said on Friday.
Stavros Dimas, the environment commissioner, is pushing for more stringent monitoring of imported fuels to ensure they do not contibute to the destruction of natural habitats by forcing food crops onto virgin land. Only “sustainable” fuels count towards the EU’s green targets.
“Commissioner Dimas has always said that sustainability includes the social aspects, such as impact on food prices,” one of his aides said. “Proper monitoring is vital. We are still discussing how to achieve that.”
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