Log in | Subscribe | RSS feed

What’s New

US Farm Bill provides incentives for biofuels

28 May 2008

The US Congress has adopted the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (H.R. 2419)—also referred to as the Farm Bill—which brings a number of incentives for commercialization of biofuels. In passing the $289 billion legislation, the Congress overrode a presidential veto.

Biofuel and bioenergy provisions of the bill, which amount to over $1 billion in total, accelerate the commercialization of “advanced biofuels” (i.e., cellulosic ethanol and other fuels that are not produced from corn kernel starch), encourage the production of biomass crops, and expand the current Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Program. Some of the provisions include:

The bill was criticized by a number of countries at the World Trade Organization (WTO) for raising farm support at the time the WTO is working toward an agreement to reduce global agricultural subsidies.

Source: US Congress