GM crops have not been officially approved in Brazil, but there are widespread reports of Brazilian farmers smuggling GM soybeans from Argentina and planting them on Brazilian soil. It's estimated that up to 30 percent of Brazil’s soybeans may be Round-Up Ready, an herbicide-resistant GM brand produced by Monsanto. Brazil is currently the world’s second largest producer of soybeans and soybean oil, a product used in nearly 60 percent of processed food. If Brazil embraces this technology, it is predicted that it will become very difficult to find foods that do not contain GM material. A decision against legalization of the technology would be a major blow to American biotech companies.

GM opponents, including the Brazilian Consumers’ Defense Institute (IDEC) and Greenpeace, are campaigning against the approval of GM crops and for the labeling of foods containing GM ingredients.

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