image: The figure a. shows the overproduction of sugar (in Mt yr-1) across the scenario between 2020 to 2050. The overproduction of sugar evolves with the share of sugarcane-based molasses route and sugar juice. With decreasing share of sugarcane-based molasses, the overproduction of sugar decreases. The figure b. shows net trade (Export – Import) for all agricultural products, indicated in Mt yr-1 across the scenarios between 2020 and 2050.
Credit: Jha et al., 2026, PLOS One, CC-BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
India has introduced plans to blend petrol with ethanol to cut oil imports and reduce carbon emissions, but this may have had negative consequences for food security, water use and other sustainability measures
EA: Article URL: https://plos.io/4fc1sfo
Article title: India’s biofuel blending policy presents serious trade-offs with land use, nitrogen emissions and food security
Author countries: India, Germany, France.
Funding: This work was funded by Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) and World Resources Institute (WRI) through the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) (Grant No. SDSN-SECR-PR01603). This research activity has been undertaken as part of the Food, Agriculture, Biodiversity, Land Use and Energy (FABLE) consortium) and coordinated by the Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN). The Potsdam Institute for Climate Change Research (PIK) and the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) are jointly coordinating activities under this project for India.
Journal
PLOS One
Article Title
India’s biofuel blending policy presents serious trade-offs with land use, nitrogen emissions and food security
Article Publication Date
8-Jul-2026
COI Statement
The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.