Study: Nations that sow food crops for biofuel may reap less than expected

Ethanol and biodiesel manufacturers have been extremely optimistic about the potential of food crops such as corn and soybeans to produce biofuels, but a new study suggests that the projections they relied on have not been realistic.

The study by University of Wisconsin and University of Minnesota researchers, published Tuesday in the journal Environmental Research Letters, determined the global yields of such crops have been overestimated by 100 percent to 150 percent.

The researchers, led by Matt Johnston and Tracey Holloway at UW-Madison and Jon Foley at the University of Minnesota, studied data from 238 nations and territories to calculate potential yields of 20 biofuels worldwide.

They found that current yield estimates were often based on output from the United States and Europe and did not account for differences in climate, soils and technology in other nations.

By analyzing detailed regional yield data that did consider this variability, the scientists tried to offer better information about whether to invest in ethanol or biodiesel, which crops to plant and how best to use existing farmlands.

Capital Times