AVOIDING BIOENERGY COMPETITION FOR FOOD CROPS AND LAND

The paper examines the conflict between bioenergy production and the global need for food, feed, and carbon sequestration. It argues that dedicated land use for bioenergy—including crop-based biofuels and cellulosic energy crops—exacerbates a projected 70 percent crop calorie gap by 2050. The authors contend that bioenergy is an inefficient use of solar radiation compared to solar photovoltaics (PV), which can produce over 100 times more energy per hectare. Furthermore, the document identifies a systemic 'double counting' error in greenhouse gas accounting that erroneously treats biomass as carbon-free. It recommends phasing out subsidies and mandates for land-dedicated bioenergy while prioritizing 'additional' biomass sources such as municipal waste and specific residues.

• Phasing out crop-based biofuels could significantly reduce the projected 2050 crop calorie gap from 70 percent to approximately 60 percent. Conversely, if a global target of 10 percent transportation fuel from biofuels were implemented by 2050, the calorie gap would widen to roughly 90 percent.
• Cellulosic biofuels (second generation) are unlikely to eliminate competition for food because the fast-growing trees and grasses required for high yields typically grow best on the same fertile lands already used for crops.
• Bioenergy is highly inefficient at converting solar radiation into energy compared to solar photovoltaics (PV). On 75 percent of the world's land, PV systems can generate more than 100 times the usable energy per hectare than bioenergy.
• Many bioenergy potential estimates rely on a 'double counting' accounting error, assuming that biomass or land already used for food, timber, or carbon storage is 'available' for energy without cost.
• Burning biomass emits carbon dioxide similarly to fossil fuels; it only reduces net emissions if it utilizes 'additional' biomass—material that would otherwise be wasted or plant growth that would not have occurred without bioenergy demand.
• Sustainable bioenergy should be limited to 'additional' sources that do not require dedicated land, such as municipal organic waste, landfill methane, urban wood waste, and certain forest or agriculture residues that do not compromise soil fertility.
• Algae-based biofuels face severe limitations; producing enough microalgae to meet just 5 percent of U.S. transportation fuel demand would place unsustainable demands on water, energy, and nutrients.
• The authors recommend five specific policy changes: fixing carbon accounting in climate treaties, phasing out subsidies and mandates for crop-based biofuels, disqualifying dedicated-land biofuels from low-carbon fuel standards, excluding them from renewable energy laws, and maintaining ethanol blend limits.

APA

Searchinger, T., & Heimlich, R. (2015). AVOIDING BIOENERGY COMPETITION FOR FOOD CROPS AND LAND. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/avoiding_bioenergy_competition_food_crops_land.pdf

Chicago

Searchinger, Tim, and Ralph Heimlich. AVOIDING BIOENERGY COMPETITION FOR FOOD CROPS AND LAND. World Resources Institute, 2015. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/avoiding_bioenergy_competition_food_crops_land.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Searchinger |first1=Tim |last2=Heimlich |first2=Ralph |title=AVOIDING BIOENERGY COMPETITION FOR FOOD CROPS AND LAND |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=January 2015 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/avoiding_bioenergy_competition_food_crops_land.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{searchinger2015avoiding, author = {Searchinger, Tim and Heimlich, Ralph}, title = {{AVOIDING BIOENERGY COMPETITION FOR FOOD CROPS AND LAND}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2015}, month = jan, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/avoiding_bioenergy_competition_food_crops_land.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }