Agriculture's Energy - by Thomas D Rogers (Paperback)

About the Book

"Thomas D. Rogers's history of a modernizing Brazil tracks what happened when a key government program - created in the 1970s by the nation's military regime - aspired to harness energy produced by sugarcane agriculture to power the country's economy. The National Alcohol Program, known as Proâalcool, was a deliberate economic strategy designed to incentivize ethanol production and reduce gasoline consumption. As Brazil's capacity grew and as international oil shocks continued, the regime's planners doubled down on Proâalcool. Drawing financing from international lenders and curiosity from other oil-dependent countries, for a time it was the world's largest oil-substitution and renewable-energy program"--

Book Synopsis

Thomas D. Rogers's history of a modernizing Brazil tracks what happened when a key government program, created in the 1970s by the nation's military regime, aspired to harness energy produced by sugarcane agriculture to power the country's economy. The National Alcohol Program, known as Proalcool, was a deliberate economic strategy designed to incentivize ethanol production and reduce gasoline consumption. As Brazil's capacity grew and as international oil shocks continued, the regime's planners doubled down on Proalcool. Drawing financing from international lenders and curiosity from other oil-dependent countries, for a time it was the world's largest oil-substitution and renewable-energy program.

Chronicling how Proalcool experimented with and exemplified the consolidation of government, agribusiness, large planters, agricultural and chemical research companies, and oil producers, this book expands into a rich investigation of the arc of Brazil's Green Revolution. The ethanol boom epitomized the vector of that arc, but Rogers keeps wider development imperatives in view. He dramatizes the choices and trade-offs that ultimately resulted in a losing energy strategy, for Proalcool ended up creating a large contingent of impoverished workers, serious environmental degradation, and persistent hunger. The full consequences of the Green Revolution-fueled consolidation continue to take a toll today.

Review Quotes

In this deeply researched and carefully structured account, Rogers first locates Proalcool within the history of the Brazilian sugar industry and the nation's broader ambitions for economic development and agricultural modernization. . . . Agriculture's Energy invites reflection on one of the starkest contradictions of the Green Revolution."-H-Environment

Rogers demonstrates his prowess as a researcher through his analysis of development strategies in Brazil. His extensive archival research, complemented by interviews with influential policymakers and local business leaders, along with his long-term commitment to agro-environmental histories, have yielded innovative and well-substantiated outcomes."--Thais R. S. de Sant´Ana, A Contracorriente