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A strategy for non-food crops and uses
Creating value from renewable materials
Sustainable development – a better quality of life for everyone, now and for
generations to come
Foundations for Our Future, Defra 2002
The only renewable and enduring source of energy we have is the sun. The
only organisms capable of capturing and refining this energy are plants. So
we’ll use them as bio-refineries for the sustainable production of food, raw
materials and biofuels
Professor Chris Leaver, Oxford University 2004
It is almost certain that the current value of the non-food crop sector does not
reflect the economic contribution which these crops could make
House of Lords Select Committee on Science and
Technology, 1999
The NFU believe that Non-Food Crops provide a unique opportunity to
address wide-ranging issues as diverse as climate change, environmental
degradation, rural development and agricultural diversification
National Farmers’ Union, 2004
Summary
1 The Government is committed to sustainable development. Renewable
materials, produced by agriculture for industrial use, will play a vital part.
2 Plants sustain life and have amazing diversity of form and function.
Agriculture, manufacturing industry and the science base can work together in
using this diversity to deliver benefits for the economy, the environment and
society.
3 Crops provide renewable materials which can substitute for fossil and mineral
materials and so reduce depletion of the earth’s resources. In addition they
can
• Improve the economic competitiveness of industry through
development of new markets and products
2
• Produce social benefits by stimulating rural communities through
establishment of local industries and providing new markets for
farmers
• Benefit the...