Today in Biofuels Opinion: “World food demand will as much as double by mid-century, and energy from traditional sources will be insufficient to meet global demand.”

Patricia Woertz, CEO of Archer Daniels Midland: “World food demand will as much as double by mid-century, and by the same time, energy from traditional sources will be insufficient to meet global demand. The world is looking to agriculture to serve these needs – against a backdrop of constrained natural resources and growing environmental challenges. We asked: what if, last year, all 15 of the top producing nations or regions had been able to achieve somewhere between 70 and 80 percent of the best yields on record? What if we could get that level of productivity out of currently farmed land? Without bringing a single additional acre of land into production, there would be an increase of up to 50 percent in global maize production; growth of up to 52 percent in world wheat production; and an increase of as much as 41 percent in rapeseed production.”

From the New York Times, Sir Richard Branson: “By 2020, [Branson] hopes that  fuel for his companies’ jet fleets will be derived from algae or consist of  isobutanol, derived from sugars. The advantage of isobutanol, he said, is that unlike some other biofuels, it does not freeze at 15,000 feet and continues burning very well in the subzero temperatures as high as 35,000 feet. It has another merit, he added. “The world is awash in sugar,” he said. “Sugar is bad for you, so let’s put it in planes.” Mr. Murray quipped, “You’re listening to someone who’s in the  soft drink business.”

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