Bioenergy, key to the fight against hunger - FAO

Agriculture and forestry could become leading sources of bioenergy, a key element in achieving two of the UN Millenium Development Goals: eradicating extreme poverty and hunger and ensuring environmental sustainability, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

In a paper presented to the nineteenth session of its Committee on Agriculture meeting in Rome from April 13 to 16, FAO recalls that around two billion people, mostly living in rural areas of developing countries, are still without electricity or other modern energy services. Increased use of bioenergy can help diversify agricultural and forestry activities and improve food security, while contributing to sustainable development, the paper says.

Bioenergy is produced from biofuels (solid fuels, biogas, liquid fuels such as bioethanol and biodiesel) which come from crops such as sugar cane and beet, maize and energy grass or from fuelwood, charcoal, agricultural wastes and by-products, forestry residues, livestock manure, and others. Biomass contributes to the substitution of imported fossil fuels, thus enhancing national energy security, reducing the import bill of petroleum products and alleviating poverty.

FAO assists member countries in their interest to convert biomass into energy and set up national strategies and programmes.

(FAO)