Mass planting of jatropha as a biofuel crop could benefit poor
areas as well as combating global warming, but only if a number of
scientific and production issues are properly addressed, a review has
warned.

Recent increases in production of crop-based (or first-generation) biofuels have engendered increasing
concerns over potential conflicts with food supplies and land protection, as well as disputes over greenhouse gas reductions. This has heightened a sense of urgency around the development of biofuels produced from non-food biomass (second-generation biofuels).