Football fans could find themselves sitting in seats made from sugar when Brazil hosts the FIFA World Cup for the first time in 64 years.

Brazil has long led the way when it comes to soccer skills, and the country has also shown considerable innovation in developing new technologies. The two worlds may meet in 2014 as one of South America’s biggest chemical companies hopes to show the way forward with its eco stadium solutions.

“What we are doing here is showing the world that we have an alternative. You can produce plastics from a renewable source,” says Fabio Carneiro, Braskem’s commercial director for renewable business.

Sugarcane is an abundant crop in Brazil, and the firm hopes that it will provide a competitive edge over its renewable energy rivals.

As well as biofuel, it is used to make green plastic — derived from plant sources rather than carbon fossil fuels such as oil.

A landmark deal has already been struck with Amsterdam ArenA, the home of Ajax football club, to first install 2,000 such “sugar seats” and eventually replace all 54,000 of the existing ones in the Dutch stadium.

Source: CNN. Read the complete story here.