Brazil's agribusiness and wind farms pressure food security and school meals

The Landless Workers' Movement (MST) is leading a national campaign to protect Brazil’s school feeding program, which serves about 40 million children through the National School Food Programme (PNAE). MST argues that large agribusiness firms and the agribusiness lobby in Brasília are seeking to replace fresh, locally produced food with ultra‑processed products to create profitable contracts, a shift it says contributes to obesity, dental caries and nutrient deficiencies among children.

A separate study by the Rosa Luxemburgo Foundation and the NGO FASE reports that wind‑energy projects are encroaching on agrarian reform settlements. In Rio Grande do Norte alone, 59 settlements are affected, with 87 wind complexes across the Northeast occupying roughly 9,443 ha, plus an additional 35 ha of solar farms. Residents report health problems from noise and lights, structural damage to homes, and loss of agricultural land, undermining family food security. The community of Serra do Mel has sued French company Voltalia, citing damage to its traditional cassava cultivation.