In recent years biofuels have attracted considerable attention in the political agenda, giving rise to a sharply polarized debate. Supporters of biofuels see them as a central technology option, capable of creating new development and economic opportunities in rural areas, increasing energy security, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (particularly in the transport sector), and enhancing air quality in large cities. Critics, on the other hand, argue that biofuels are a threat to food security and that, if developed unsustainably, biofuels can be a driver for land-use change, loss of carbon stores via deforestation and ploughing up grasslands, biodiversity loss via agriculture intensification and expansion, water and air pollution.

There is obviously the fundamental question of whether biofuels should be supported at all. However, it is the policy framework used to promote biofuels which will determine which of these contradictory paths is followed, and will be paramount in ensuring the development of biofuels with a positive environmental and socio-economic impact. Particular focus should be placed on the requirements and regulatory systems that will need to be in place to guarantee the sustainable production of biofuels.

The European Union and its member states are committed to promoting sustainable development and ensuring that EU internal and external policies are consistent with and supportive of global sustainable development. However, certain internal EU policies have the potential to undermine sustainable development in developing countries, as can be the case with the EU biofuels policies.

Despite the biofuels controversy, this technology has made its way to the European Union, as reflected by the recent adoption of a new renewable energy directive (Directive 2009/28/EC), on 23 April 2009, which requires the delivery of 20 per cent of total energy from renewable sources by 2020, with the level of effort differentiated across the member states, and sets a new mandatory target requiring all member states to achieve a 10 per cent share of renewable fuels in the final energy consumed in the transport sector by 2020. Although this target is to be met by various renewable fuel sources, biofuels are expected to contribute a significant share of the total, and “it is both likely and desirable that the target will in fact be met through a combination of domestic production and imports”.