A “land of the future”—that was how the author Stefan Zweig rhapsodized about Brazil. He wasn’t the first one to pin his hopes on this country—and he won’t be the last

Brazil is the world’s fifth-biggest country, with the fifth-largest population. In the past 40 years, Brazilians’ life expectancy has increased by 15 years and the country’s per capita gross domestic product has grown by 450 percent. Brazil is a land of superlatives that offers many opportunities—but also many challenges

Brazil’s beaches and promenades resemble catwalks. In international comparisons, it’s the fourth-largest market for cosmetics and body care products. Brazilians, especially Brazilian women, invest considerable time and money in looking attractive. In its laboratory in Brazil, Evonik has developed cosmetic formulations that include specialized skin care products for soothing the skin before and after tattooing

No other country in the world produces more sugarcane. Brazil also leads the global rankings of exporters for meat, coffee, and soybeans. Evonik supports agriculture with products including Biolys®, a biotechnologically produced amino acid that improves animal feed

Cars in Brazil: In Brazil, the VW beetle is called the Fusca. Over three million of them had been made in Brazil by 1996, when production there ceased. Even though there are considerably more bicycles than cars in Brazil (70 million versus 43 million), cars are regarded as status symbols. The automotive market collapsed dramatically during the economic crisis starting in 2014, but recovered in 2017. Evonik operates a plant near São Paulo for producing silicas, which are primarily used for producing high-quality automobile tires with reduced rolling resistance

Since the boom years in the early 2000s, 30 million Brazilians have climbed up into the middle class. The people in this group are active consumers and are also very communicative. In 2016, the country had 1,189 mobile lines per 1,000 inhabitants