Rio de Janeiro, June 11 - Hundreds of landless peasants occupied properties of industrial conglomerate Votorantim and a supermarket belonging to the Wal-Mart group on Wednesday in a second day of protests in Brazil against multinational firms.
The Via Campesina movement said about 500 protesters occupied two sites belonging to Votorantim, one of them a farm in Rio Grande do Sul state to demonstrate against the advance of monoculture crops that were harming the environment and small farmers.
It said its members had also occupied a Nacional supermarket, part of the Wal-Mart group, in the Rio Grande do Sul city of Porto Alegre to protest against what it called the control of agriculture by multinational companies.
At least 10 protesters were wounded when they clashed with police during a march by more than 1,000 people to protest against the state government, Via Campesina said in a statement.
Several thousand peasants of Via Campesina, which includes the Landless Workers Movement (MST), invaded properties across Brazil on Tuesday, protesting against foreign corporate influence, the country's fast-growing biofuels industry and rising food prices.
The actions in 13 states on Tuesday targeted mining giant Vale, Brazil construction and petrochemical group Odebrecht, U.S. fertilizer and oilseed processor Bunge Ltd, and French power firm Suez.
The MST and similar groups frequently occupy farms, block highways, torch crops and stage rallies to pressure the government to give more land to the poor. Landowners often hire armed guards and hit squads to repel invasions.
Landless militants have blocked a railroad operated by Vale several times in recent months and interrupted the flow of iron ore to foreign markets. Industry and farm lobbies have urged the government to get tougher on the landless movements, saying they undermine investment conditions in Brazil.