Bush reaffirms biofuels support

In the continuing debate about biofuels benefits, President George W. Bush made it clear in recent months that he is for increased usage of renewable fuels such as biodiesel. In two speeches, the president called for lowering greenhouse gases through the use of renewable fuels.

First, the president reiterated the requirement of fuel producers to supply at least 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel per year by 2022. On a separate occasion, during a Rose Garden news conference on the economy, he reinforced America's need for biofuels, saying, "It's in our national interests that our farmers grow energy, as opposed to us purchasing energy from parts of the world that are unstable or may not like us."

The president also countered questions about biofuels' impact on food prices, stating that the vast majority of the world's food prices "are caused by weather, increased demand and energy prices," and not biofuels. His comments were in response to the recent frenzy of attacks on biofuels.

"It's encouraging to hear the president reinforce that producing and using biofuels is the right thing to do for our country," said NBB CEO Joe Jobe. "In recent months, U.S. biofuels have been accused of everything from food cost increases to gender discrimination in Third World countries. These claims are largely based on faulty science that has not been peer-reviewed, ignoring the large body of credible scientific evidence that shows biodiesel is a bright spot in our fuel supply-socially, environmentally and economically."

In recent remarks, the president also said, "Another reason for high gas prices is the lack of refining capacity." The U. S. biodiesel industry is helping increase the nation's refining capacity by building plants that produce an American-made, cleaner burning fuel. The 500 million gallons of biodiesel produced in the United States in 2007 displaced 20 million barrels of petroleum.