Agriculture

Report: World's Largest Meat Packer Likely Won't Meet Amazon Deforestation Commitments

Published APR 19 2025

Story

Above: Cattle graze in a deforested area of the Amazon a few meters from the archaeological site of the Royal Fort Principe da Beira. Image credit: Rafael Vilela/The Washington Post via Getty Images

The Facts

Journalists from the Guardian, Unearthed, and Repórter Brasil said in a joint report published on Thursday that an investigation with more than 35 ranchers and cattle industry representatives found that the world's largest meat-packer, Brazil-based JBS, is set to fail to meet its deforestation targets in the Amazon rainforest again.
Unearthed
Guardian
The company had promised to eliminate deforestation from its cattle supply chain by 2030 — with a specific target of 2025 for indirect suppliers in the Amazon — as part of its global environmental commitments, including achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.
JBS
Those interviewed said that meeting the year-end deadline for cleaning up the beef supply chain is unfeasible, citing alleged limitations in the monitoring system, which they say struggles to track rule violations and illegal cattle laundering as livestock move through various ranches from birth to slaughter. JBS has dismissed these conclusions as irresponsible.
Unearthed
Guardian
This comes as the meat packer is set to convene its board as early as Tuesday to call a general meeting of shareholders, likely to be held next month, to vote on a "dual listing" plan to trade stocks both in Brazil and the United States, with a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission indicating June 12 as a potential first day of trading in New York.
Reuters
Last year, Brazil's federal environmental agency imposed $64 million in fines against 23 meatpacking companies and their suppliers for buying and selling illegal cattle in the Brazilian Amazon. JBS received the fifth largest penalty, $108,000, for purchasing 1,231 head of cattle.
The Associated Press
Regarding illegal deforestation among its direct suppliers, JBS claims to have fully eliminated it, in line with its 2023 deadline, but investigations from Repórter Brasil and Unearthed claim to have found separate incidents in which the meat packer bought directly from penalized farms over the past six months.
Unearthed
JBS

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

It's irresponsible to spread allegations from some ranchers in Brazil as if they were true. JBS has responsible purchasing policies focused on social-environmental compliance and with annual independent audits on its livestock operations and supplier monitoring system.

JBS

Narrative B

Whether JBS admits to it or not, it's clear that its beef supply chain is one of the main drivers of Amazon deforestation as the meat packer greenwashes animals' origins and works within a legal system full of loopholes. JBS has promised to eliminate deforestation from its supply chain for more than a decade now, it's about time to make good on that.