Tuesday, April 15, 2008 Biofuels can't be sacrificed for food security: Nograles By Ben O. Tesiorna
HOUSE Speaker Prospero Nograles opposed the plan to put on hold the biofuels program of the National Government in favor of the food security program in the wake of the rice crisis.
In a text message, Nograles said the arable land in the country is so vast that it could always accommodate crops for food and biofuel at the same time.
"We have enough agricultural lands to develop. Both (biofuels and food security) can proceed side by side," Nograles said.
He even floated the idea of "forcing" owners of vast lands to make use of their idle lands for food production or else the government would use it for them.
"If it is legally possible, the motto for all agri lands should be 'you use or you lose it'. That way we force those who own agri-lands more than they can handle to develop for food sufficiency especially rice, corn," Nograles said.
International Monetary Fund managing director Dominique Strauss Kahn earlier warned that soaring food prices would lead to war and cause trade imbalance. Such is reportedly happening now in Haiti, Egypt and Bangladesh. The Food and Agriculture Organization said 37 countries currently faced a food crisis.
Nograles said though that the situation in Haiti and other countries where food riot is already happening is far different from the Philippines because Haiti's main crop is not grains but sugarcane.
"We can't be compared to Haiti. Haiti is more on production of sugarcane not too much grains. And so countries with less grains produced will suffer first and those who have grains will suffer last," Nograles said. (BOT)
