Economics of biofuels

Food and feed must be given priority

The government’s bid to raise the level of ethanol blending in petrol to 20 per cent (E20) by 2025, instead of 2030, needs a serious rethink. A report released last week by private policy analyst Arcus, in the presence of NITI Aayog representatives, rules out the availability of enough raw material to produce the required 13.5 billion litres of ethanol. The 2018 National Policy on Biofuels envisages using agricultural produce, such as sugarcane, rice, and maize, to make alcohol. These crops already have committed demand for food, feed, and other purposes. The scope of expanding the areas under them is