May 28, 2008

Ottawa, Ont. – Today, the Government of Canada celebrated the passage of its biofuels legislation through the House of Commons, which allows requirements that all gasoline sold in Canada contain five percent ethanol by 2010, and all diesel and heating oil contain two percent renewable fuels by 2012. The legislation will now proceed to the Senate of Canada for debate.

The Government introduced Canada’s Biofuels Strategy in 2006 to increase opportunities in the biofuels industry and ensure Canadians will have cleaner air for generations to come.

"This Government’s biofuels strategy will create jobs in our communities, local markets for our farmers, and a new source of cleaner-burning, renewable fuel to protect our environment," said Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. "It is unfortunate that the NDP and Bloc voted against this legislation, because it’s a double-win for both farmers in Canada and the environment."

"In 2006, our government announced these biofuels goals, and we’ve swiftly taken the right steps to ensure our goals are met for the benefit of both the environment and for farmers," said Environment Minister John Baird. "In fact, this biofuels plan will amount to the equivalent environmental benefit of taking one million cars off the road."

The biofuels strategy is part of the government’s balance plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020. It also represents a tremendous economic opportunity for the country’s 61,000 grain and oilseeds producers as well as for those involved in the creation of the next generation of biofuels. The government is investing $500 million in the development of new biofuels technologies. Next generation technologies such as cellulosic biofuels are taking the discarded stocks of corn plants to produce fuel while sending the corn kernels back into the food supply.