April 18, 2007

 

'Fuel versus food' debate under spotlight at AGRA Middle East
 
Press release
 

 

The pressure on global corn supplies for animal feed, human food and bio-fuel fell under the spotlight on the opening day of AGRA Middle East, the region's premier exhibition for all aspects of the agribusiness industry.

 

An exhibition seminar highlighted that as major world economies including the United States search for alternative fuels to crude oil for economic and environmental reasons, the knock-on effect is being felt in agriculture as competition among the feed, food and energy industries for limited corn supplies heats up.

 

The livestock, food and energy sectors need to find ways of raising their efficiency given limited resources, said Greg Bunge, regional sales manager for American animal feed supplier Alltech.

 

Bunge added that global corn supplies are limited due to the limited planting area available without deforestation.

 

"At the end of the day, agriculture is going to be the loser of the three. Hydrogen as an alternative to ethanol mixed with fuel is still some way off, so corn is needed for ethanol production; and people are always going to put food for themselves before animals," he commented.

 

The price of corn has doubled in the last 12-18 months, up from US$2/bushel (US$78/tonne), at which it had remained fairly stable since 1980, to US$4.18/bushel (US$162/tonne) today.

 

This in turn, has led to price increases in consumer food items such as eggs and meat: for every US$0.25/bushel increase in the price of corn, US$0.01 is added to the price of a dozen eggs and US$0.04 to a kilogram of processed meat. Bunge added that increases of up to 48 percent could not be ruled out.

 

Michael Hanlon, Exhibition Manager for AGRA Middle East at IIR, said the exhibition was a valuable forum for networking. "Established for more than 10 years, AGRA Middle East is a proven networking platform that makes a significant contribution towards the region's economies by promoting and providing networking opportunities for the varied trade activities of Pan Arab markets," he said.

 

Supported by domestic, regional and international organisations such as the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID), the Malaysian Fisheries Department, the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water, and the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI), AGRA Middle East showcases the latest advances in agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture.

 

For more information, please visit: www.agribusinessme.com

 

    HE Eng. Hussain Nasser Lootah, Acting Director General, Dubai Municipality,

opens AGRA Middle East at Dubai International Exhibition Centre,

accompanied by Jessica Sutherland, General Manager of IIR Middle East