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CHAPTER FOUR: SCHOOL, WORK, AND INDUSTRY
tobacco, and many other products. Cotton grown in the southern part of the
country is shipped to the textile mills in the east.
SKYROCKETING SOYBEANS
Exporting soybeans to a growing global market has become a significant
part of the Brazilian economy. During the past five decades, soybean
production has increased tenfold, to 260 million tons (236 million metric tons).
One of the most important crops is still sugarcane. Today, Much of Brazil’s
sugarcane is processed into ethanol, a biofuel. By the mid-1980s, every driver
in Brazil was driving a vehicle that was ethanol-powered. Today, almost all cars
there have “flexible” fuel engines that can run on either gasoline or ethanol. In
fact, Brazil, gets 30 percent of its automobile fuel from sugarcane ethanol.
In addition, Brazil is a major supplier of cattle, exporting large quantities of
beef and other products. While cattle ranching and even ethanol production
have helped fuel Brazil’s economy, perhaps no one crop contributes to the
country’s coffers more than coffee.
A coffee planation in Alto Caparaó in the state of Minas Gerais.