THE STATE
OF FOOD
AND
AGRICULTURE
2008

BIOFUELS: prospects, risks and opportunities

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FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
Rome, 2008

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Foreword   (Download  810 Kb)
Acknowledgements
Abbreviations and acronyms

PART I - BIOFUELS: PROSPECTS RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES SERVICES

1. Introduction and key messages  (Download  206 Kb)

Agriculture and energy
Opportunities and risks for liquid biofuels
Biofuel policies and objectives: is there a mismatch?
Key messages of the report

2. Biofuels and agriculture – a technical overview (Download  109 Kb)

Types of biofuels
Liquid biofuels for transport
Biofuel feedstocks
Biofuels and agriculture
The biofuels life cycle: energy balances and greenhouse gas emissions
Second-generation liquid biofuels
Potential for bioenergy
Key messages of the chapter

3. Economic and policy drivers of liquid biofuels (Download  136 Kb)

Biofuel markets and policies
Underlying objectives of biofuel policies
Policy measures affecting biofuel development
Economic costs of biofuel policies
Economic viability of biofuels
Key messages of the chapter

4. Biofuel markets and policy impacts (Download  111 Kb)

Recent biofuel and commodity market developments
Long-term projections for biofuel development
Medium-term outlook for biofuels
Impacts of biofuel policies
Key messages of the chapter

5. Environmental impacts of biofuels (Download  111 Kb)

Will biofuels help mitigate climate change?
Land-use change and intensification
How will biofuel production affect water, soils and biodiversity?
Can biofuels be produced on marginal lands?
Ensuring environmentally sustainable biofuel production
Key messages of the chapter

6. Impacts on poverty and food security (Download  115 Kb)

Food-security impacts at the national level
Food-security impacts at the household level – short-run effects
Biofuel crop production as an impetus for agricultural growth
Biofuel crop development: equity and gender concerns
Key messages of the chapter

7. Policy challenges (Download  82 Kb)

Questions addressed by the report
A framework for better biofuel policies
Areas for policy action
Conclusions

Views from civil society
Agrofuels or food sovereignty?
Biofuels: a new opportunity for family agriculture

PART II - WORLD FOOD AND AGRICULTURE IN REVIEW (Download  208 Kb)

Agricultural commodity prices
Agricultural production and stocks
Trade
Food aid and food emergency needs
Key factors driving future prices
Looking ahead

References (Download   388 Kb)
Special chapters of The State of Food and Agriculture

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