Widely quoted OECD anti-biofuels report turns out to be … not from the OECD

An author of a study produced for the OECD Roundtable on Sustainable Development has posted a clarification on Gristmill regarding the relationship between OECD and the report. He writes:

“I was surprised that, despite the paper displaying prominently that it was “by Richard Doornbosch and Ronald Steenblik”, the press has paid more attention to the logo on the cover, and has begun each story with “The OECD says … .” There are no doubt people working for the OECD Secretariat who would agree with the paper, but the OECD as an institution — as a club of nations — certainly has not endorsed the paper.The paper (which at this stage was meant to be a discussion paper and revised before being published) was produced for a body that is largely independent of the OECD — ambiguously called the OECD Round Table on Sustainable Development — a talking shop for Ministers of Environment, Finance and Trade.”

The report has been misquoted as an OECD report in The Washington Post, The Toronto Globe & Mail, MSNBC, The Melbourne Age and The Financial Times, among other outlets. Reuters is among the organizations which picked up on the story and reported it as an OECD report instead of a draft discussion document for an OECD affiliate. Reuters and the Globe & Mail were contacted to make a retraction, but have not yet responded.

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