While ethanol firms paint a picture of Brazil as the world’s “ethanol barn” with large areas
of land “available”, there is mounting violence against farming communities and indigenous
people. In the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, where Raízen is active, the Guarani-Kaiowá have
been driven away from their territory and pushed into a small area. The Federal Public Prosecutor
estimates there are as many as 47,000 Guarani-Kaiowá in Mato Grosso do Sul, the
largest population of indigenous people in Brazil, living in an area of about 20,000 hectares.