(Bio)Fueling Injustice? - Europafrica

sufficient size of production to achieve economy of scale. He further notes that it is
difficult to involve outgrowers (small-scale farmers) in biofuel projects because of the
costs, and thus “scale is likely to remain a challenge because a large scale is required
to reduce costs, but financing and implementing large projects are difficult, and
concern over the impacts will likely emerge.” 261 It also reflects a recent trend for the
promotion of large-scale monoculture farming in Africa, including for biofuels. 262
Whether it is intended or not, biofuel policies, as they are currently designed, promote
a particular relation to the land where it becomes a commodity like any other
one, ignoring the social impacts. 263 In a period where the transition from subsistence
farming into sustainable, agro-ecological agriculture is a key objective for both food
security and environmental reasons, large-scale investments are accelerating
unsustainable commercial farming. 264 This comes as a direct consequence of the EU
and other states’ biofuel policies as they create an artificial market in this direction. As
an expert in a report commissioned by the FAO explains: “foreign investors see a profit
in biofuel as long as their markets are guaranteed, but they see no profit in investing in
cassava and other traditional food in Africa.” 265
An analysis of the history of the negotiations of the RED reveals that the directive has
been pushed for and defended by large industrial groups. 266 The RED even
specifies that “the main purpose of mandatory national targets is to provide certainty
for investors”, in addition to encourage development of technologies. 267 Globally,
pressure from the agro-industrial interests has been identified as one of the reasons
for the rapid recent growth of agrofuel policies. 268 Logically, the EU biofuel policy
reflects these particular business interests. Even in developed countries such as
Germany, case studies show how, for the production of biofuel, small-scale farmers
have been marginalised and agro-business interests have prevailed instead. 269 The
intensity and gravity of this movement is unsurprisingly multiplied in African countries.
Empirical data and qualitative studies show a very clear trend: by driving imports for
cheap biofuels produced in developing countries, transferring part of its food
production to Africa, and creating the enabling conditions for private companies and
investors to invest in land, the EU biofuel policy has a direct consequence on land
grabbing in Africa.
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