Brazil is the largest producer of bioethanol, and sugarcane is the main raw material. Bioethanol is produced by both batch and continuous processes, and in some cases, flocculating yeast is used. This article analyzes the Brazilian Ethanol Program. For the 1996-1997 harvest, Brazil produced 14.16 billion L of ethanol and 13.8 million metric t of sugar, from 286 million metric t of sugarcane. These products were produced by 328 industries in activity, with 101 autonomous ethanol plants producing only ethanol, and 227 sugar mills producing sugar and ethanol. The sugar-ethanol market reaches about 7.5 billion US$/yr, accounting for direct and indirect revenues.