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JBS to buy more companies

Sandhusker

Well-known member
JBS SA, the world's largest beef producer, said it may buy companies in Brazil next year after expanding in the United States through a series of acquisitions.

JBS has concluded its expansion plans in the U.S. and plans to focus on integrating the units this year, CEO Joesley Batista said yesterday in Sao Paulo.

Sao Paulo-based JBS bought Swift & Co. for $225 million (U.S.) in May to become the world's top beef producer and paid $1.27 billion this year to buy Smithfield Food Inc.'s beef unit, Tasman Group in Australia and control of closely held National Beef Packing Co. in the U.S. A European Union ban on Brazilian beef may drive down profits of domestic producers and make acquisitions cheaper, Batista said.

"It may be that we see a reduction of margins in Brazil," he said. "We'll have many acquisition opportunities in Brazil."
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Continued ban on Brazilian beef justified by EU report says NFU
Wednesday, 16 Apr 2008 15:40
- 22/23 April 2008

The NFU has said a report out by the EU Food and Veterinary Office has justified its call for a ban on Brazilian beef more than a year ago, after the inspection found ‘systematic failures’.

The official report of the inspection, held in November, states the failures were discovered in relation to holding registration, animal identification and movement controls, and provisions were not guaranteed to exclude slaughtered animals from non-approved FMD areas for export to the EU.

The findings, says NFU livestock board chairman Alistair Mackintosh, prove not only was the NFU justified in calling for the ban on Brazilian beef exports to the EU, but that one should have been introduced earlier.

“This report highlights once again what we have told the Commission for a long time now, namely that one of our main competitors has been allowed to operate to lower standards of traceability than that of home producers”, he said.

“High traceability standards in the UK mean I have to tag my cattle and register them to move them off my farm, so it makes my blood boil to see this report highlighting deficiencies in Brazilian controls which could allow for the fraudulent use of ear tags and for cattle from non-approved FMD areas of the country to be exported to the EU.

As a result of this inspection and the resultant EU ban on beef imports, apart from those from EU-approved holdings, currently just 95 farms are certified to export to the EU which is less than one per cent of the farms allowed to export, before the partial ban came into place.

Mr Mackintosh said: “While it has always been the NFU’s preferred outcome to see a total ban on imports from Brazil, until they get their house in order, we expect the FVO to be vigilant and robust in its monitoring of the situation in Brazil to ensure they operate to the same standards as those expected of home producers”.


Notes to editors:

1. The EU FVO visit tool place between November 6 and 19


NFU, Agriculture House, Stoneleigh Park, Stoneleigh, Warwickshire, CV8 2TZ
Press Officer: Sharon Hockley
Telephone: 024 7685 8686 FAX: 024 7685 8651 ISDN: 02476 416289

Http://www.nfuonline.com

The NFU champions British farming and provides professional representation and services to its farmer and grower members.
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Systematic Failures in Brazilian Beef Industry
Posted, April 18, 2008 @ 00:00

Ban on Brazilian beef fully justified by damning FVO report but many questions left unanswered

Brussels, 18th April 2008 -- Conservative MEP and Chairman of the European Parliament Agriculture Committee, Neil Parish today called the ban on the import of Brazilian beef " Fully justified" after a report from the EU Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) found "systematic failures" in many of the Brazilian traceability and animal identification systems.

In 2005, the European Commission banned the import of beef from three Brazilian states which had foot and mouth disease, however, the FVO report admitted that it was virtually impossible to confirm that beef imported into the EU from other Brazilian states had not originally come from Foot and Mouth infected areas. The FVO report found many failings, including the fraudulent use of ear tags, a complete lack of traceability of cattle, serious problems in the slaughterhouses and processing plants and in at least two cases, holdings were able to export to the EU, even after being banned from doing so.

Since the ban came into force on 1st February 2008, only 80 tonnes of beef has been imported from Brazil into the EU from 95 holdings that have been licensed to export. In 2007, 300,000 tonnes were imported from over 10,000 farm holdings.

Mr Parish said:

"This report is absolutely damning and fully justifies the ban on Brazilian beef. It also backs up what I have been telling the European Commission for a long time. It is a disgrace that farmers in the EU have to adhere to very high traceability standards, yet at the same time, Brazilian beef was allowed in that was nowhere near these standards.

"I also want to know why it took so long for the European Commission to put the ban in place; we warned them about this last summer and this FVO report took place in November but the beef was not banned until February. There are clearly serious problems in the Brazilian industry and if they want to start importing into our market again, they will have to meet the same high standards that our farmers do."

Neil Parish MEP

And JBS was the Big Exporter in Brazil !
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PORKER

Well-known member
EU and ethanol ease threat from Brazilian beef
ROG WOOD April 23 2008


Brazil's beef export trade with Europe has virtually ceased since the EU vigorously applied its farm accreditation rules for cattle traceability.

It could take Brazil's farmers some time to meet the standards required for exports on a significant scale to resume.

In the meantime, British beef producers have been enjoying a welcome boost to their prices.


According to a report delivered yesterday in Edinburgh to a gathering of farming journalists and MSPS, including Cabinet Secretary Richard Lochhead, Brazil may never again be as big a threat to the British beef industry.

The report was compiled by a group of 16 young farmers back from a study tour of Brazil that had attracted sponsorship from a wide range of sources, including the newly set up "Cameron Travel Scholarship Trust".

Whilst the group were acutely aware that the Brazilian authorities were only allowing them to see the best of Brazil's agriculture, they also noted that the country was increasingly targeting beef exports to new emerging markets in Asia and Africa.

Brazil is the world's largest beef producer, with 207 million cattle and exports of more than 2.5 million tonnes. Russia, Egypt and, until recently, Europe were the biggest markets, with Britain importing 25% of the EU total.
On average, Brazilians eat 37kg of beef every year, and if they ate an extra 3kg, Brazil would not have enough beef for export.

In a vast country where statistics are hard to comprehend, of the 220 million hectares of pasture available, it is estimated that as little as 150 million hectares are currently grazed.

Significantly, beef cattle are giving way to sugar cane production for ethanol on the more fertile land.

There are 350 sugar cane plants now operating in Brazil, producing 20 billion litres of ethanol and 30 million tonnes of sugar.

Of the 20 billion litres, only 3 billion litres are exported. However, by 2012 it is predicted that there will be 412 plants producing 38 billion litres of ethanol, leaving an export surplus of 10.5 billion litres.

Currently, 6.3 million hectares are cultivated for sugar cane production, and projections show that by 2020 that will have more than doubled to 13.9 million hectares.

Displacing beef cattle to poorer land with harsher climatic conditions may erode their competitive advantage.

Andrew Stewart, from Lesmahagow YFC, reported that at the time of their visit in December, Brazil's farmers were getting approximately £1.60p/kilo deadweight for their cattle. The predominant breed was Zebu, which produced light carcasses of about 200 kilos.

In common with the other members of the group, he had been impressed by the support given to Brazil's farmers from their government and the non-farming community in a country where agriculture accounts for 33% of GDP.
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Hey Canadians , Here is your big chance to ship traceable Beef to the EU. It's under EU terms though. They surely would eat Angus or Belted Galloway before eating Zebu.
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Steaks are high for Brazilian Beef
Posted, May 06, 2008 @ 00:00

Conservative MEP wary of return for Brazilian beef after rumpus with Brazilian politicians.

Brussels, 6th May 2008 ---- Conservative MEP and Chairman of the European Parliament Agriculture Committee, Neil Parish has ruled out a quick return to large scale imports of Brazilian beef after meeting with Brazilian politicians and visiting several Brazilian farms hoping to gain licences to export into the EU

The European Commission imposed a ban on Brazilian beef in February, following damning reports of the situation in Brazil by the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) and the EU Food and Veterinary Office (FVO). Mr Parish then led a delegation from the European Parliament Agriculture Committee to see for himself whether the deficiencies that led to the ban, such as a lack of ear tags and an effective system of traceability for cattle, still existed in farms hoping to be allowed to export again to the EU.


Speaking after his return, Mr Parish said:

"I'm not going to mince my words- some Brazilian farms are good and some not so good. However what concerned me most was the arrogance of some Brazilian politicians, who did not seem to want to work within the rules that the EU and Brazil had jointly agreed to.


"Their bullish and indifferent attitude to our concerns does a disservice to Brazilian farmers, many of whom are ready to take the steps needed to meet our regulations. We are not going to negotiate on this, I am very happy to see Brazilian beef imported into the EU, but any meat that does come in must meet our standards.


"During a visit to a slaughter house we saw some of the deficiencies that had been identified in the previous reports, including cracked floors and cattle arriving for slaughter without ear tags, which would not be acceptable in the EU. These lapses have to be addressed before we can ease the ban.

"Farmers in the UK have complete traceability of cattle from birth to the abattoir, yet we only ask Brazil for 90 days traceability within a region and 40 days on a particular farm. Despite this they are still unable to provide it.

"There can be no ifs or buts- either Brazilian beef meets our conditions or it doesn't. If is does, we will welcome it, but if it doesn't, our gate will remain firmly closed."

Neil Parish MEP
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Senators grill beef executive over deal
BY DAVID IRVIN

Posted on Thursday, May 8, 2008



The top manager of Brazilian-owned JBS-Swift and Co. faced tough questions Wednesday from U. S. senators over the company’s plan to buy two U. S. packers and a large cattle-feeding operation.

Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., headed the meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, which was available over the Internet.

Kohl said U. S. Department of Justice antitrust measures have been weak in recent years, and he had concerns about what the JBS deal would do to competition.

“Millions of consumers are depending on aggressive antitrust enforcement, and now is not the time for antitrust enforcers to be asleep at the switch,” Kohl said.

At issue is whether JBSSwift, formed last year when JBS SA bought Colorado based Swift and Co., should be allowed to buy National Beef Packing Co. of Kansas City, Mo., and Virginia-based Smithfield Foods’ beef business.

Wesley Batista, the chief executive officer of JBS-Swift and Co., said during the meeting the deal would improve the performance of the U. S. beef industry.

“JBS now has a global operation that we plan to use as a platform to expand the sales of beef and pork around the world,” Batista said. “We will increase our demand and sales over time; this will benefit ranchers and feedlots.” Included in the deal is Five Rivers, a major feeding operation in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, also on the subcommittee, said the deals will leave ranchers with “minimal selling options throughout large geographic areas.” If the full deal goes through, JBS-Swift will become the largest beef packer in the nation, supplanting Springdale-based Tyson Foods Inc.

JBS-Swift would have daily cattle slaughter capacity of about 43, 000 head, about 15, 000 more than Tyson. Grassley pointed out that JBS would control 32 percent of the domestic slaughter capacity.

The total value of the deals comes to about $ 1. 5 billion. Last year, JBS put up $ 225 million in cash and assumed $ 1. 2 billion in debt for Swift’s operations. If the current deals are approved, JBS will have invested nearly $ 3 billion in the U. S. beef business since last summer.

JBS sales will increase to $ 22 billion a year once the transactions are complete, compared with $ 12 billion, top JBS managers in Brazil said earlier this year.

The company has been aggressively buying slaughterhouses around the world for several years. Just last week, JBS completed a $ 150 million deal for Australian beef and sheep producer Tasman Group Ltd., according to Australian media reports.

Bill Bullard is chief executive officer of the Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America, which represents independent ranchers. At the hearing he argued that JBS-Swift’s desire to buy Five Rivers, the largest cluster of feedlots in the country, is troublesome.

“Under this merger, JBS will be in close proximity to all of those feedlots,” Bullard said. “JBS is going to be able to capture 2 million head and use those cattle strategically to keep from entering the competitive marketplace.” Batista said Five Rivers’ capacity is closer to 1. 4 million head a year, and the new company wouldn’t change how the feedlots are used. However, JBS would expand shifts and hire more workers, just as it did when it bought Swift and Co., he said. Near the end of the two-hour meeting, Kohl asked whether the Brazilian government had subsidized JBS’ takeover bid in the United States.

Batista denied that the government had any hand in the deals. Colin Woodall, executive director of legislative affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a beef industry lobbyist, attended the Senate hearing. Woodall said in a statement that it is important “to keep this examination focused on packing industry concentration and the potential impact on livestock producers’ ability to compete in a free and fair market.” To contact this reporter: [email protected] com
 

PORKER

Well-known member
JBS reports third straight quarterly loss

(MEATPOULTRY.com, May 16, 2008)
by Bryan Salvage


SAO PAULO, BRAZIL ― JBS SA may cut output and reduce workers in Argentina after government limits on exports contributed to a third-straight quarterly loss, according to Bloomberg.

JBS reported a first-quarter loss of $4 million in the aftermath of a European Union ban on Brazilian beef and declining exports from Argentina.

The company’s first-quarter loss compared with net income of U.S. $6.44 million a year earlier. During the quarter ending March 30, net sales increased significantly to $3.56 billion from $661 million, thanks in part to last year’s acquisition of Swift & Co. JBS will likely post a profit this quarter as U.S. margins improve, said Joesley Batista, chief executive officer, during a press conference in Sao Paulo.

JBS will start trimming Argentine production by 30% and eliminate 1,500 of its 4,000 workers there unless export restrictions are lifted by the end of this week, Mr. Batista said. JBS may also shift 1,000 positions to production of fresh beef from processed meat, which isn't in high demand in the Argentine market, Bloomberg said.
 

PORKER

Well-known member
Brazilian Beef Ban 'Fully Justified'
Posted on: Thursday, 24 April 2008, 00:00 CDT

The National Farmers' Union has said the report by the EU Food and Veterinary Office has justified its call, a year ago, for a ban on Brazilian beef, after the inspection found "systematic failures."

The official report of the inspection, which was carried out in November, states the failures were discovered in relation to holding registration, animal identification and movement controls, and provisions were not guaranteed to exclude slaughtered animals from non-approved foot and mouth disease areas for export to the EU.

The findings, said NFU livestock board chairman Alistair Mackintosh, proved that not only was the NFU justified in calling for the ban on Brazilian beef exports to the EU, but that one should have been introduced earlier.

"This report highlights once again what we have told the EU Commission for a long time now, namely that one of our main competitors has been allowed to operate to lower standards of traceability than that of home producers," he said.

"High traceability standards in the UK mean I have to tag my cattle and register them to move them off my farm, so it makes my blood boil to see this report highlighting deficiencies in Brazilian controls which could allow for the fraudulent use of ear tags and for cattle from non-approved FMD areas of the country to be exported to the EU."

As a result of the inspection and the resultant EU ban on beef imports, apart from those from EU-approved holdings, currently just 95 Brazilian farms are certified to export to the EU, which is less than 1 per cent of the farms that were allowed to export before the partial ban came into place.

Mr Mackintosh added: "While it has always been the NFU's preferred outcome to see a total ban on imports of beef from Brazil, until they get their house in order we expect the EU Food and Veterinary Office to be vigilant and robust in its monitoring of the situation in Brazil, to ensure they operate to the same standards as those expected of home producers."

The long-running issue has seen EU parliamentarians seeking a ban for many years.

(c) 2008 Western Morning News, The Plymouth (UK).
 
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