Starting next year the Renewable Fuels Standard requires petroleum retailers to blend 500 million gallons of biodiesel into the fuel supply. And the same groups going after ethanol are gearing up to fight the biodiesel mandate as well.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which has been leading a lobbying campaign against ethanol, has commissioned a study on the economic impact of the biodiesel mandate. Vegetable oils used to make biodiesel are key ingredients in a wide variety of processed foods, including salad dressing, crackers, bread and soup. - Source
Most biodiesel in this country is made from soybean oil. Soybeans are about 20% oil and 80% meal. Soy meal is a high protein food component normally used as livestock feed. So if the demand for soybean oil from biodiesel production causes more soybeans to be grown, more food becomes available in the form of more soy meal.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
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