World Bank Weighs in on Biofuels Impact on Food

clipped from www.topnews.in Washington- Efforts by industrialized countries to reduce their dependence on foreign energy sources and cut climate-changing emissions has prompted a strong backlash from some developing nations dealing with a worsening food crisis. The problem lies in bio-fuels, an alternative source of energy that is often made from food crops. The World Bank last week said that a boost in bio-fuels production was largely to blame for an 83- per-cent increase in food prices over the last three years. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the World Bank's sister-lender, the International Monetary Fund, said that many ministers expressed similar concerns to him privately over the weekend - some labelling food-to-fuel production a "crisis of humanity." Wheat, soy and palm oil prices have all been hit by increased bio- fuel production, the World Bank said. "While many are worried about filling their gas tanks, many others around the world are struggling to fill their stomachs," Zoellick said Thursday. (dpa)