South African biofuels strategy said to exclude corn as a feedstock

In South Africa, the long-awaited national biofuels strategy is said to exclude corn as a biofuel feedstock, according to reports. The policy is said to focus on using surplus agricultural capacity, to avoid conflicts with food production.

The farmers union criticized the rumored exclusion, saying that South Africa has the capacity to produce 13 million tons of corn per year while the domestic market, which the industry experts described as “stagnant”, demanded only 10 million tons.

Groups such as Sasol have indicated they will move into biofuel development only after the announcement of government policy, and contingent on government capital spending support or other forms of assistance such as subsidies.

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