fuelling destruction in latin america

The report argues that the drive for agrofuels in Latin America is based on a cash-crop model of intensive monocultures that benefits large landowners and international agribusiness while causing widespread deforestation, water shortages, and human rights abuses. In Brazil, sugarcane expansion is linked to slave-like working conditions and the displacement of family farms. Argentina's soy-based biodiesel industry has led to significant deforestation and the concentration of land ownership, with 46% of production controlled by 2.2% of producers. In Colombia, oil palm expansion is associated with paramilitary violence and the forced displacement of Afro-descendant and indigenous communities. Central American countries, including Costa Rica, Guatemala, and El Salvador, are increasing production to meet US and EU demand, which the report warns will exacerbate child labour and food insecurity. The document highlights the influence of multilateral banks like the IADB and the World Bank, and corporations such as Cargill and Bunge, in financing and driving this transition.

• Sugarcane expansion in Brazil is causing severe environmental and social issues, including the use of labour conditions described as akin to slavery for sugarcane cutters, who represent over half of the sector's one million jobs.
• In Argentina, the soy-based agrofuel industry has led to extreme land concentration, where 2.2% of producers control nearly half of all soy production, and contributes to the annual eradication of approximately 250,000 hectares of forest.
• The expansion of African oil palm in Colombia is linked to violence and human rights violations, specifically the incursion of paramilitary groups to forcibly remove black and indigenous communities from collective lands.
• In El Salvador, the sugarcane harvest is associated with significant child labour, with reports of 30,000 children participating in the harvest, some as young as 8 years old.
• Agrofuel production in Guatemala has led to the diversion of river flows for sugarcane irrigation, leaving downstream communities without sufficient water for their basic needs.
• Uruguay faces risks of increased foreign land ownership and threats to biodiversity due to the expansion of soy, sugarcane, and forest plantations for cellulose ethanol.
• International financial institutions, particularly the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) and the World Bank, provide substantial funding and technical assistance to promote agrofuel expansion across the region.
• The transition to mechanized harvesting in Brazil's sugarcane sector threatens to eliminate over 60% of jobs, creating a climate of insecurity that leads workers to accept dangerous conditions.
• The use of genetically modified (GM) seeds in Argentina's soy industry, primarily licensed by companies like Monsanto and Syngenta, has led to increased herbicide spraying and contamination of aquifers.

APA

Ortiz, L., Santos, C., Rodriguez, L., Pedace, R., Torres, I. V., Quiroa, S., Rojas, I., & Godinez, M. (2008). fuelling destruction in latin america. Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/07-foei-biofuels-lr.pdf

Chicago

Ortiz, Lucia, Carlos Santos, Lorena Rodriguez, Roque Pedace, Irene Vélez Torres, Silvia Quiroa, Isaac Rojas, and Mario Godinez. fuelling destruction in latin america. Friends of the Earth International, 2008. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/07-foei-biofuels-lr.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Ortiz |first1=Lucia |last2=Santos |first2=Carlos |last3=Rodriguez |first3=Lorena |last4=Pedace |first4=Roque |last5=Torres |first5=Irene Vélez |last6=Quiroa |first6=Silvia |last7=Rojas |first7=Isaac |last8=Godinez |first8=Mario |title=fuelling destruction in latin america |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=September 2008 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/07-foei-biofuels-lr.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{ortiz2008fuelling, author = {Ortiz, Lucia and Santos, Carlos and Rodriguez, Lorena and Pedace, Roque and Torres, Irene Vélez and Quiroa, Silvia and Rojas, Isaac and Godinez, Mario}, title = {{fuelling destruction in latin america}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2008}, month = sep, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/07-foei-biofuels-lr.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }