EU will no longer feed tanks with soy biofuel

Newly released research from the European Commission confirms that soy biofuels have high indirect land-use change (ILUC) risk, driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, and CO2 emissions. A new draft regulation is currently under review ahead of its planned adoption by the Commission at the end of February.

“This is a breakthrough moment, although it’s long overdue,” said Ingrid Tungen, Head of Deforestation-free Markets at Rainforest Foundation Norway. She stresses that the phase-out must now be implemented rapidly and without loopholes.

For years, Rainforest Foundation Norway has campaigned to remove soy from European tanks

Soy expansion is a major driver of forest and savannah destruction in regions such as the Brazilian Cerrado, one of the world’s most biodiverse ecosystems. Clearing these landscapes releases vast amounts of carbon, undermining global efforts to tackle climate change and threatening Indigenous peoples and local communities.

“For too long, the EU has counted soy biofuels towards renewable energy targets, but it has fueled forest destruction, land conflicts, and global emissions. Phasing out soy and other deforestation-driving biofuels is both long overdue and necessary if the EU is going to meet its climate and deforestation targets,” Tungen said.

Biofuels drive destruction

Biofuel has been promoted heavily throughout the EU as part of the 2009 Renewable Energy Directive. In 2019, palm oil was phased out towards a complete stop by 2030. Soy biofuels will now follow the same path. While this removes one of the most damaging feedstocks from Europe’s energy mix, rising EU demand for biofuels means pressure on land and forests will continue to grow.

According to advocacy group Transport & Environment, more than 100 million tonnes of sugarcane are used for global biofuel production — a figure expected to increase by 50% by 2030. This includes projects in places such as Papua, Indonesia, where natural forests are already being cleared to make way for sugarcane plantations.

“Feeding tanks with crops that could be food for people and animals is rarely a good idea,” Tungen said.

“The EU should prioritise genuinely sustainable solutions in the transport sector, including energy efficiency, electrification and truly low-impact, zero emissions fuels — not crops that compete with forests, food and land rights”.