Norman Borlaug, Nobel laureateDr Norman Borlaug (at right), father of the “Green Revolution” that transformed world agriculture in the 1940s and 1950s, saving millions of lives, has spoken out about the increasing use of food as biofuels.  He thinks it’s gone too far and is likely to cause excessive increases in the price of food.

Borlaug, now 93, watches with dismay as ever-greater amounts of the world's grain are turned into motor fuel for developed nations.

"It isn't going to solve our energy problems, and it's going to disrupt our food system," Borlaug said Thursday.

He stressed that he's not against biofuels, "up to a certain point." But using food as a fuel requires a careful balance, and Borlaug tilts his arms wildly to show how lopsided he thinks the balance has become.
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The rush to build corn-based ethanol plants is starting to transform agriculture. So much so that, if trends continue, Borlaug's native Corn Belt state of Iowa may soon need to import corn.

"Pretty sad," Borlaug said, shaking his head. "In the next two to three years, if things continue to unfold as they are now, the price of meat is going to skyrocket."

Asked about another current controversy, Dr Borlaug agrees that global temperatures seem to be increasing, but he’s not convinced that human activity is the cause.

For his work as an agricultural scientist, Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970.

h/t: Greenie Watch

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