Another reason to “Ban the Batistas” by the advocacy group of the same name

Ban the Batistas is calling for a federal investigation into JBS to determine whether the world’s largest meatpacking company knowingly sourced its meat from cattle farms in Brazil.

JBS USA Holdings, Inc. is a meat processing company and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Brazilian multinational JBS S.A. The U.S. subsidiary came about when JBS entered the American market in 2007 with its purchase of Swift & Company. 

Ban the Batistas is an advocacy group opposing a U.S. stock listing by JBS S.A., which it says will protect American farmers, ranchers, consumers, and investors from the risks and unchecked power grab by its majority shareholders, brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista.

 It cites a new investigation from The New York Times, supported by a “Mighty Earth” report, that found that JBS’s supply chain ranchers have turned to using chemicals to degrade trees as a new way to evade detection by environmental monitoring systems and Brazilian authorities. 

According to Mariana Gameiro, a senior adviser at Mighty Earth Organization, supermarkets have bought cattle from farms where deforestation occurred, although it is unclear whether any of that meat has landed in our supermarkets. 

Ban the Batistas is urging a “full-fledged investigation” by multiple U.S. authorities – from the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Commerce to the Environmental Protection Agency and Congress – because it claims JBS’s atrocities touch and impact American markets, farmers, ranchers, and consumers.

“Americans have come awake to another JBS scandal – this time plastered on the front page of The Grey Lady – that uncovered how their criminal network of cattle ranchers is using toxic chemicals to destroy forests and ship their tainted meat into our grocery stores,” said Jason Elan, Executive Director of Ban the Batistas. 

“Instead of using bulldozers, they’re deploying chemical warfare, proving there is no line they won’t cross to line their own pockets. This latest investigation raises serious questions about the health and safety of the cattle from these farms and the meat shipped to our shores. We believe this warrants a full investigation by multiple U.S. agencies and authorities to determine the full extent of this sourcing and misconduct.”

At the same time, the meat giant, run by the billionaire Batista brothers, is pushing to cash in on Wall Street even as its list of violations grows. JBS is seeking an initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange, which would grant JBS access to U.S. investor capital to fund its complete takeover of the world’s meat industry and meat prices. A group of U.S. Senators has said that a JBS IPO “would further entrench its monopoly power and embolden its monopoly practices.”

“JBS and their criminal associates cannot be trusted, and we call on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to block their IPO efforts until the truth is uncovered,” Elan continued.

JBS, its subsidiaries, and criminal Batista brother owners have been the subjects of numerous investigations and lawsuits. In the last four years alone, they have faced $240 million in judgments and settlements for price fixing and bid rigging. 

The meatpacker’s owner, J&F Investimentos SA, also pleaded guilty to US foreign bribery charges in 2020 and agreed to pay $128 million for a settlement. Most recently, McDonald’s filed a federal lawsuit alleging JBS and other food companies conspired to fix beef prices by artificially limiting supply. 

(To sign up for a free subscription to Food Safety News, click here.)