Ottawa, Canada
July 31, 2007
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Bi-weekly Bulletin
July 27, 2007 Volume 20 Number 12
BIOFUELS AND THE EUROPEAN UNION
The European Union (EU) is the
world leader in biodiesel production. During the last decade,
production of biodiesel in the EU has increased significantly
due to legislative initiatives, tax incentives and a desire for
decreased dependency on foreign sources of energy. The growing
demand for vegetable oil for biodiesel production in the EU has
significantly increased imports of canola oil from Canada to
about CAN$205 million (M) in 2005 from CAN$14.5M in 2003.
However, consumer demand for biodiesel has recently slowed, as
several key countries including the United Kingdom, Italy and
Spain have not fully implemented past promises to raise biofuel
use, and Germany has removed a key tax break. Short-term growth
in the industry may be constrained by excess capacity, but the
long-term prospects remain strong as a result of the new energy
and climate change policy which includes a 10% binding minimum
for biofuel share of transport fuel by 2020. Further information
on the biofuel sector in the EU can be found in the Bi-weekly
Bulletin Volume 20, Number 7, Vegetable Oils: Situation and
Outlook, and Volume 19, Number 15, Biodiesel.
Full report:
http://www.seedquest.com/News/releases/2007/pdf/19996.pdf
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