90
5 Brazil Between Bioeconomy Barons and Grassroots Agroecology
tropics could or should follow (Mathews 2007; FAO 2008; Mitchell 2011). Indeed,
despite various fluctuations through the 2010s, the biofuels and bioeconomy sector
has remained prominent throughout—from the heyday of Lula da Silva’s presidency
to the Bolsonaro administration. The Amazon is occasionally flagged as a source of
virtually inexhaustible resources for bioeconomy development, but a reality check
may be in order.
This chapter looks deeper into the Brazilian case to understand why it has engaged
so actively with the bioeconomy in the way it has. First, this chapter describes
the context of biofuel production and consumption in Brazil, its national policy
framework, and examines institutional causality. Then, it analyzes the distributional
outcomes and social impacts of that production as the most substantive example of
bioeconomy to date—and the axis around which the country is now developing other
novel bioproducts. Finally, the chapter delves into politics and agency, identifying the
key agents of bioeconomy governance in Brazil’s domestic context, advocacy coalitions and their policy beliefs, and strategic uses of power. The chapter concludes
with key insights on why certain biofuel production and bioeconomy patterns have
prevailed in Brazil.
5.1 Biofuels in Brazil: How and Why
5.1.1 The Brazilian Setting: Energy and Agri-Food Contexts
5.1.1.1 Energy Context
A high rate of renewables characterizes Brazil’s energy mix. They made up 45.2% of
the country’s energy supply in 2018, a high share it has more or less maintained since
the early 2000s despite absolute increases in consumption (EPE 2019a). This rate
contrasts with 19% in the European Union and merely 10.8% on average in OECD
countries (IEA 2020). Biofuels alone represent 19% of the total energy use, including
ethanol, biodiesel, and electricity produced from sugarcane biomass. Still, fossil fuel
dependence remains significant, particularly in transport, which represents one-third
of Brazil’s total energy consumption and is expected to remain the fastest-growing
energy consumer among all sectors in the 2020s (EPE 2020). While 83% of Brazil’s
electricity comes from renewable sources, the renewables rate is 23% in the transport
sector. Fossil diesel (mainly used for heavy road vehicles) meets nearly half of this
sector’s demand. Gasoline and ethanol (for light-duty vehicles), in turn, have shares
of 26 and 19%, respectively.
1
Meanwhile, domestic oil production is on the rise. Since 2006, Brazil’s oil production has exceeded its domestic consumption, and in 2018 the country was a net
1 This refers to energy content, not volume. The same volume of ethanol has only two-thirds of
gasoline’s energy content, therefore volumetric comparisons that do not take this into account may
be misleading (EPE 2019a).
5 Brazil Between Bioeconomy Barons and Grassroots Agroecology
tropics could or should follow (Mathews 2007; FAO 2008; Mitchell 2011). Indeed,
despite various fluctuations through the 2010s, the biofuels and bioeconomy sector
has remained prominent throughout—from the heyday of Lula da Silva’s presidency
to the Bolsonaro administration. The Amazon is occasionally flagged as a source of
virtually inexhaustible resources for bioeconomy development, but a reality check
may be in order.
This chapter looks deeper into the Brazilian case to understand why it has engaged
so actively with the bioeconomy in the way it has. First, this chapter describes
the context of biofuel production and consumption in Brazil, its national policy
framework, and examines institutional causality. Then, it analyzes the distributional
outcomes and social impacts of that production as the most substantive example of
bioeconomy to date—and the axis around which the country is now developing other
novel bioproducts. Finally, the chapter delves into politics and agency, identifying the
key agents of bioeconomy governance in Brazil’s domestic context, advocacy coalitions and their policy beliefs, and strategic uses of power. The chapter concludes
with key insights on why certain biofuel production and bioeconomy patterns have
prevailed in Brazil.
5.1 Biofuels in Brazil: How and Why
5.1.1 The Brazilian Setting: Energy and Agri-Food Contexts
5.1.1.1 Energy Context
A high rate of renewables characterizes Brazil’s energy mix. They made up 45.2% of
the country’s energy supply in 2018, a high share it has more or less maintained since
the early 2000s despite absolute increases in consumption (EPE 2019a). This rate
contrasts with 19% in the European Union and merely 10.8% on average in OECD
countries (IEA 2020). Biofuels alone represent 19% of the total energy use, including
ethanol, biodiesel, and electricity produced from sugarcane biomass. Still, fossil fuel
dependence remains significant, particularly in transport, which represents one-third
of Brazil’s total energy consumption and is expected to remain the fastest-growing
energy consumer among all sectors in the 2020s (EPE 2020). While 83% of Brazil’s
electricity comes from renewable sources, the renewables rate is 23% in the transport
sector. Fossil diesel (mainly used for heavy road vehicles) meets nearly half of this
sector’s demand. Gasoline and ethanol (for light-duty vehicles), in turn, have shares
of 26 and 19%, respectively.
1
Meanwhile, domestic oil production is on the rise. Since 2006, Brazil’s oil production has exceeded its domestic consumption, and in 2018 the country was a net
1 This refers to energy content, not volume. The same volume of ethanol has only two-thirds of
gasoline’s energy content, therefore volumetric comparisons that do not take this into account may
be misleading (EPE 2019a).