South Africa warms to approval of surplus maize for biofuels
In South Africa, the agriculture ministry is warming to the idea of using corn as a biofuel feedstock—something they had originally planned but got deterred by the food prices spikes and later food vs. fuel debate. South African farmers have over-produced about 3 million metric tons of maize this season but have no immediate markets for it. The minister said that it takes time to change policy so biofuels couldn’t immediately absorb the surplus, so the country is in discussions with the UN to have the global agency by the corn for food aid.
Tina Joemat-Pettersson, South Africa’s Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry said: “It is also about energy, development and saving, and therefore with the excessive maize surplus, we as a government need to look again at our biofuels policy.”
Category: Policy
