Da Rocha Soares Ferreira, V: Biodiesel in Brazil

Global warming is a major concern nowadays. Many studies are under way around the world in search of new forms of clean energy because the development model based on fossil fuels is unsustainable. In Brazil the ethanol market is already well established and the biodiesel market is on the rise, which will guarantee a clean fuel to replace fossil diesel and create new alternatives for farmers. The National Program for Biodiesel Production and Use was established in 2005 and it is already responsible for the addition of 5% of biodiesel to fossil diesel consumed in the country. The program also created thousands of new jobs inexistent five years ago. All of it has happened without compromising food security for domestic consumption and for export. This book presents the program as a public policy which can change the reality for many small family farmers in Brazil, seeking not only occupation and income but also a new model of development which is sustainable.