Brazil Sugarcane Industry: Public Needs Education on Ethanol

In Brazil, the Union of the Industry of Cane Sugar Association (UNICA) has asked the government to help in educating the public about ethanol, stressing the need to overcome prejudices caused by inadequate public policies and interference in the fuel market that hurts ethanol's competitiveness.

To that end, the Parliamentary Front for the Enhancement of the Sugarcane Industry, was officially launched in the capitol city of Brasilia.

Last year, more than $4 billion was spent on sugarcane plantation renovations and expansions in Brazil's South Central region, representing a significant investment in that area's economy  This is in addition to the money spent on infrastructure to help the biofuels industry. All this does not take into account the increasing resources dedicated to the development of cellulosic ethanol or second generation biofuel.

UNICA stressed that Brazilian ethanol producers today produce 7,000 to 8,000 liters of ethanol per hectare of sugarcane, which is recognized by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as an advanced biofuel. This makes them more competitive than corn ethanol producers in the US whose production does not exceed 4,000 liters per hectare.