Brazil Confirms 32 Methanol Poisoning Cases Linked to Contaminated Alcoholic Beverages

On October 13, 2025, Brazil’s Ministry of Health confirmed a total of 32 methanol poisoning cases across the country linked to the consumption of alcoholic beverages containing methanol. According to the latest report from G1, 181 additional suspected cases remain under investigation by state health authorities.

Since the beginning of official surveillance, Brazil has recorded 213 reported cases, while 320 suspected cases have been ruled out after laboratory testing and field verification.

Among all confirmed cases, São Paulo state accounts for the majority with 28 cases, followed by Paraná (3) and Rio Grande do Sul (1). In São Paulo, five fatalities have already been confirmed. Authorities are still investigating nine other deaths potentially linked to methanol exposure — including three in São Paulo, three in Pernambuco, one in Mato Grosso do Sul, one in Minas Gerais, and one in Ceará.

Regarding the 181 suspected cases still under investigation, São Paulo remains the most affected region with 100 ongoing cases, followed by:

• Pernambuco (43)

• Espírito Santo (9)

• Rio Grande do Sul (6)

• Rio de Janeiro (5)

• Mato Grosso do Sul (4)

• Piauí (4)

• Goiás (3)

• Maranhão (2)

• Alagoas (2)

• Minas Gerais (1)

• Paraná (1)

• Rondônia (1)

Two cases initially reported in Garanhuns and Ipojuca (Pernambuco) were later reclassified after verifying the patients’ actual residences — one in Maceió (Alagoas) and the other in São Paulo.

The Ministry of Health stated that updates on methanol poisoning data will be released three times per week — every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday after 17:00 (local time) — through the Ministry’s Emergency Operations Center.

Officials continue to warn consumers to avoid unregulated or homemade alcoholic beverages, emphasizing that methanol ingestion can cause blindness, organ failure, and death even at low doses.