Speaking on a National Biodiesel Board panel – Dr. Stephen Kaffka of the University of California – Davis Department of Plant Sciences said it’s time to start thinking of agriculture as multi-functional. According to Kaffka – biofuel feedstocks or residue use should be considered from a cropping system’s perspective and not just as a separate enterprise. He said in sound agricultural systems – crops used for fuels need not compete with crops used for food.

Participating on the same panel was Keith Kline of the Center for Bioenergy Sustainability at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Kline said worldwide – bioenergy done correctly can be part of the solution to address food insecurity and poverty. He added that biofuels can also help diversify and expand production and markets – thereby reducing commodity price volatility while creating opportunities for value-added processing and employment.

Don Scott – National Biodiesel Board Director of Sustainability – said biodiesel has multiple positive impacts on the food supply. For instance – biodiesel uses only the oil portion of the soybean – not the protein. By increasing yield without increasing crop acres – he said we are growing more fuel and food from the same land.