Minas Gerais: The Interior Empire

Minas Gerais is the heartland of Brazil, vast, productive, and deeply influential.

With 586,528 km², it is:

• Larger than Germany

• Home to over 21 million people ,the second most populous state in Brazil

• The leading national producer of iron ore, coffee, dairy, and energy

• A logistics and industrial backbone that powers both Southeast and Central Brazil

• A historical and cultural engine from colonial gold routes to modern innovation hubs

🛤️ Strategic Role

• Largest state not on the coast, yet fully connected by road, rail, and air corridors

• Leading contributor to Brazil’s mining GDP especially iron, gold, and niobium

• Headquarters of energy generation (hydro, solar) and industrial parks

• Home to logistics super-nodes like Uberlândia, Betim, and Contagem

• Source of 60% of Brazil’s specialty coffee exports

📐 Comparative Area

Region Area (km²)

Minas Gerais (BR) 586,528

Germany 357,582

Ukraine 603,550

France 551,695

Spain 505,990

🧭 Economic Identity

• Leading producer of milk, iron ore, coffee, and gold

• Strong agribusiness and agro-industrial integration

• Diversified economic base: mining, manufacturing, agritech, education, logistics

• Large, skilled population with growing urban markets

• Headquarters of global corporations and Brazilian multinationals

🧠 Why It Belongs in the Series

Minas Gerais has no ocean and no borders, but it holds the center of gravity of the Brazilian economy.

It is big, deep, and decisive, the kind of place that builds nations rather than headlines.

At Latitude3, we track scale not just by land, but by centrality, continuity, and capacity.

📌 Part of the series Continental Brazil
Next: “Amazonas: The World's Largest Rainforest State