Source: Indystar
ROME — Soaring demand for biofuels is contributing to a rise in global food import costs, increasing the burden for developing countries already struggling to feed their populations, a United Nations food agency said last week.

Global expenditure for imported foodstuff in 2007 is expected to top $400 billion, almost 5 percent above last year’s record, while developing countries are expected to face a 9 percent increase, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said. The Rome-based agency’s “Food Outlook” report blamed most of the increase on price hikes of up to 13 percent for coarse grains and vegetable oils, the commodities that are more heavily used in biofuel production. Last month, an agency report said that biofuels like ethanol can help reduce global warming and create jobs for the rural poor. But it warned that the benefits may be offset by higher food prices for the hungry.

Biofuels, which are made from corn and other agricultural products, have been seen by many as a cleaner and cheaper way to meet the world’s soaring energy needs.