European Union Biodiesel Production Slumps in 2011

[FONT=Times New Roman]Greening the European Union has suffered a setback. The European Biodiesel Board is reporting that the European Union biodiesel industry production forecasts are noting a 2011 decrease in output, the first since data has been gathered, down from 2010 figures of 9.57 million tons. The European Biodiesel Board reported that biodiesel generation in Europe in 2010 grew by 5.5 percent over 2009 production figures, while in 2009 the European Union's biodiesel industry grew by 17 percent. Recently the European Union's best year for biodiesel output was 2008, when the growth rate surged 35 percent over 2007 levels. Germany and France are the European Union's leading biodiesel producing nations, followed by Spain and Italy. According to the European Biodiesel Board, reasons for the decline include increased imports from Argentina and Indonesia as well as North America. The European Union currently has 254 biodiesel facilities, which analysts predic...