After a phase of enthusiasm for this green energy, biofuels have been denounced as a costly mistake, responsible for deforestation, rising food prices and land grabbing in poor countries.

Like other technologies before them, biofuels have not escaped hype. They were supposed to solve all our problems: oil dependency, climate change, suffering farmers in developed countries and impoverished farmers in developing countries. After an initial phase of enthusiasm for this green energy, biofuels were denounced as a costly mistake, responsible for deforestation, rising food prices, and land grabbing in poor countries. At the same time, the United States and Europe, as well as India, China, and Brazil, are encouraging their production and consumption through regulations and subsidies. How can we help but be confused by so many contradictory messages? Without claiming to provide definitive answers to all these questions, this book highlights uncertainties about biofuel and points the way forward down the most promising avenues of developement.