Quote:
Originally Posted by yearby
I sort of get the feeling a lot of people are against the idea of ethanol, but I for one are all for it.
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The food v fuel debate.
Hunger is morally compelling.
In 2000, over 90% of the U.S. corn crop went to feed people and livestock, many in undeveloped countries, with less than 5% used to produce ethanol. In 2013, however, 40% went to produce ethanol, 45% was used to feed livestock, and only 15% was used for food and beverage (AgMRC).
Unfortunately, Brazil is clear-cutting almost a million acres of tropical forest per year to produce biofuel from these crops, and shipping much of the fuel all the way to Europe
Humans originally switched from biomass to fossil fuels because biomass was so inefficient, and took so much energy and space to produce. So far technology has not reversed these problems sufficiently to make widespread use beneficial.
Morally the case for ethanol is weak when you consider the impact it has on food prices for those that can least afford it.