## Brazilian corporations control 40% of U.S. beef processing—and both have criminal records.
*By Beef News | Research conducted 2026-02-03*
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**RESEARCH PARAMETERS**
– **Domain**: Monopoly Power + National Security
– **Tier**: VI (Monopoly Mask-Off) with national security framing – **Primary Sources**: Farm Action consolidation data, USDA
concentration metrics, SEC filings, DOJ settlements
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When four corporations control [**80-85% of the U.S. beef
industry**](https://farmaction.us/concentrationdata/), it’s a monopoly problem.
When **two of those four are foreign-owned**, it’s a **national security crisis**.
JBS—the world’s largest meat company—is Brazilian. So is **Marfrig**, which owns **National Beef**, the fourth-largest U.S. beef packer.
Together, they control an estimated **40% of American beef processing capacity**. That’s not a supply chain. That’s **foreign occupation of a strategic food sector**.
And both companies have criminal records.
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## THE BIG FOUR: A BREAKDOWN
The U.S. beef industry is dominated by four corporations. Here’s who they are—and who owns them:
**1. Tyson Foods** → American (publicly traded, Arkansas-based) **Market share**: 20-25% of U.S. beef slaughter
**2. JBS USA** → **Brazilian** (owned by JBS S.A., Brazil)
**Market share**: 20-25% of U.S. beef slaughter
**Criminal record**: Bribed [1,800+ Brazilian
politicians](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/), paid **$3.4 billion in corruption fines*
*, admitted to **money laundering**
**3. Cargill** → American (privately held, Minnesota-based)
**Market share**: 15-20% of U.S. beef slaughter
**4. National Beef** → **Brazilian** (majority-owned by Marfrig, Brazil) **Market share**: 14-15% of U.S. beef slaughter
**Criminal record**: Parent company Marfrig has faced [deforestation
lawsuits](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/), labor abuse allegati
ons, environmental violations
Outside the Big Four, [**only 16
companies**](https://farmaction.us/concentrationdata/) procure and slaughter a substantial amount of cattle. The top 10 control **91% of national cattle slaughte
r**. The top 20 control **98%**.
At the local level, concentration is even worse: **few ranchers have the option of selling to more than three or four packers**. In many regions, there are **only one or two buyers**.
—
## JBS: THE CARTEL-LINKED GIANT HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
JBS is not a normal corporation. It’s a **transnational criminal enterprise** that bribed its way into the U.S. market, launders cartel-tainted cattle through Mexico, and still collects taxpayer contracts to feed American schoolchildren.
### The Bribery Scheme
In 2017, JBS executives **Joesley and Wesley Batista** admitted they had [**bribed over 1,800 politicians in
Brazil**](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-il lusion-of-choice/) to obtain sweetheart loans from Brazil’s national development bank, **BNDES**.
Those loans were used to **acquire Swift, Pilgrim’s Pride, and other U.S. meat companies**, turning JBS into a dominant player in the American meat market almost overnight.
In total, JBS paid over **$3.4 billion in corruption-related fines**. Despite the scale of its admitted crimes, JBS has **never been banned from doing business with the U.S. government**.
### The Cartel Connection
According to a [2022 investigation by InSight
Crime](https://insightcrime.org/), the **Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG)** imposes a **5-peso-per-kilo tax** on cattle destined for the U.
S. export market.
These cattle are funneled through Mexico’s formal traceability system, often with **forged health certificates** and corrupt oversight from livestock officials.
**JBS operates in Mexico.** It is one of the largest meat processors and exporters in the region.
> “CJNG had begun charging a 5 peso per kilo fee on cattle exported to the United States.” > — InSight Crime
These cattle—sourced from deforested lands, Indigenous territories, or criminally extorted ranchers—are laundered through
government-certified paperwork and processed by plants approved to expor
t to the U.S.
If JBS isn’t directly sourcing from these flows, it would be the **first meatpacker to ever resist cartel-aligned convenience**.
### The Child Labor Scandal
In January 2025, the **Department of Labor** discovered that cleaning contractors in JBS plants [**employed children as young as
13**](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-mon opoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/) to clean grinders and brisket saws during overnight shifts—using caustic chemicals at facilities in Grand Island, Worthington, and Greeley.
The company funded a **$4 million victim aid package** and terminated the contractor—yet was **allowed to retain USDA contracts**.
Let that sink in: a U.S.-based subsidiary of a foreign corrupt giant was fined for letting minors work overnight in dangerous
slaughterhouse conditions, and **still feeds your child through the federal school lunch program**.
### Taxpayer-Funded Felony
JBS has received **hundreds of millions in USDA contracts**, including payments to supply meat to:
– Public schools
– Military bases
– VA hospitals and nursing homes
According to [Meat + Poultry](https://www.meatpoultry.com/), bipartisan lawmakers urged USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack to **ban JBS from future contracts** following its bribery admissions.
He refused—arguing that banning JBS would “disrupt the market.”
> “Removing a firm from government-wide procurement would potentially impair competitive choice for the taxpayer.” > — USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack
**Translation**: The monopoly is too big to fail. Independent ranchers are too small to save.
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## NATIONAL BEEF: THE QUIET BRAZILIAN IN THE ROOM
While JBS grabs headlines, **National Beef** flies under the radar—despite being the **fourth-largest beef packer in the U.S.** with a **14-15% market share**.
National Beef is majority-owned by **Marfrig Global Foods**, a Brazilian multinational with its own troubled history:
– **Deforestation**: Marfrig has been sued and investigated for sourcing cattle from illegally deforested Amazon lands.
– **Labor abuse**: The company has faced allegations of exploitative labor practices across its supply chain.
– **Environmental violations**: Marfrig’s operations have repeatedly clashed with Indigenous land rights and environmental protections.
Like JBS, National Beef benefits from **Brazilian state-backed financing** while controlling a strategic chokepoint in the U.S. food system.
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## THE ILLUSION OF CHOICE: 70+ BRANDS, 4 OWNERS
Walk into any American grocery store and you’ll see dozens of beef brands: **Swift, Certified Angus, 1855 Black Angus, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Ball Park, Hebrew National, Happy Harvest**.
All of them—**every single one**—roll up to one of the Big Four.
[Farm Action’s brand
mapping](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/) reveals that **more than 70 meat brands** are controlled by Tyson, JBS , Cargill, and National Beef.
Shoppers think they’re choosing between competitors. In reality, **they’re choosing between labels printed by the same four
corporations**.
And **two of those corporations answer to Brasília, not Washington**.
—
## THE RANCHER EXTINCTION EVENT
As the Big Four consolidated power, independent ranchers were driven into extinction.
**The numbers don’t lie**:
– [**Between 2002 and
2022**](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/), the U.S. lost:
– **58,000 feedlots** (72% decline)
– **18,000 hog farms** (23% decline)
– **56,000 dairy farms** (61% decline)
Yet **livestock production has not decreased**. Instead, fewer operations produce the vast majority of our food supply.
Independent rancher [Mike
Callicrate](https://nobull.mikecallicrate.com/) summarized the carnage:
> “Out of this very facility, I used to sell to 20 meatpackers. That got down to zero.”
JBS and National Beef didn’t just “compete.” They **eliminated the competition**—then bought the corpses.
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## THE NATIONAL SECURITY ARGUMENT
Foreign control of critical infrastructure is a **national security risk**. Here’s why:
### 1. **Supply Chain Vulnerability**
When a single plant controls **5-6% of U.S. beef processing**, a fire becomes a national crisis.
In 2019, a [fire at Tyson’s Holcomb, Kansas
plant](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/)—which processed **5-6% of U.S. beef**—caused **ma
rket panic and price spikes**.
Now imagine a geopolitical conflict that disrupts JBS or National Beef operations. **40% of U.S. beef processing** could vanish overnight.
### 2. **Foreign Leverage Over U.S. Food Policy**
JBS and Marfrig are headquartered in **Brazil**. Their fiduciary duty is to **Brazilian shareholders**, not American ranchers or consumers.
If Brazil faces trade disputes, currency crises, or political instability, **U.S. beef supply is at risk**.
### 3. **Criminal Infiltration of Government Contracts**
JBS has a **documented history of bribing government officials**. It paid **$3.4 billion in fines** for corrupting Brazil’s political system.
Now it holds **hundreds of millions in U.S. taxpayer contracts** to feed schoolchildren and military personnel.
**Question**: If JBS bribed 1,800 Brazilian officials to secure favorable loans, what prevents it from corrupting U.S. regulators to maintain market access?
### 4. **Legal Exposure Under U.S. Law**
JBS qualifies as a **federal criminal risk** under multiple U.S. statutes:
– **FCPA violations**: Already admitted to foreign bribery; subject to U.S. enforcement as a NYSE issuer (JBS listed on NYSE in 2025). – **Import fraud**: Fraudulent documentation and cattle laundering via Mexico triggers **18 U.S.C. § 542 and § 545**.
– **Money laundering**: Integration of narco-taxed cattle into USDA supply chains violates **18 U.S.C. § 1956**.
– **Asset forfeiture**: USDA contract revenues derived from tainted supply chains are vulnerable under **18 U.S.C. § 981**.
Any other company would be under **DOJ investigation or SEC freeze orders**.
JBS is cashing checks from the government.
—
## THE REVOLVING DOOR: WHEN REGULATORS WORK FOR THE MONOPOLY
The most brazen symbol of regulatory capture? **Tom Vilsack**, current USDA Secretary.
After serving as Agriculture Secretary under Obama (2009-2017), Vilsack landed the **highest-paid position at the nation’s largest checkoff program**: CEO of the U.S. Dairy Export Council—a role funded by mandatory dairy checkoff fees.
His combined compensation from checkoff-funded roles? [**$1.5 million**](https://farmaction.us/2023/04/12/checkoff-corruption/).
In 2021, Vilsack **returned to USDA as Secretary**—the same agency responsible for overseeing the programs that paid him.
When asked why he won’t ban JBS from USDA contracts despite its criminal bribery convictions, Vilsack’s answer was revealing:
> “Removing a firm from government-wide procurement would potentially impair competitive choice for the taxpayer.”
There is no “competitive choice.” **There’s a cartel with a Brazilian accent.**
—
## THE SOLUTION: DECENTRALIZATION OR DELISTMENT
The monopoly must be broken. Here’s how:
### 1. **Ban Foreign-Owned Corporations from Critical Food Infrastructure**
No foreign entity should control more than **10% of U.S. processing capacity** in any single commodity.
### 2. **Delist JBS from U.S. Exchanges**
The SEC should **suspend JBS trading** pending a full investigation into: – Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations
– Import fraud and cattle laundering
– Misuse of taxpayer contracts
### 3. **Terminate USDA Contracts with JBS and National Beef**
Immediate cessation of all federal contracts with foreign-owned meatpackers convicted of corruption or linked to organized crime.
### 4. **Reinstate Country of Origin Labeling (COOL)**
Give American ranchers the ability to market **”Born, Raised, Slaughtered in the USA”** beef—a powerful differentiator against JBS and National Beef’s imported, cartel-tainted product.
### 5. **Fund Regional Processing Capacity**
Break the bottleneck by funding **100+ regional USDA-inspected processing facilities** across the country. This creates **market access for independent ranchers** and **eliminates single points of failure**.
### 6. **Enforce Antitrust Law**
The Big Four qualify as an illegal oligopoly under **Section 1 of the Sherman Act**. The DOJ should **investigate and prosecute**
price-fixing, market allocation, and anti-competitive conduct.
—
## THE BOTTOM LINE
This isn’t about protectionism. It’s about **sovereignty**.
When two foreign corporations—**both with criminal records**—control **40% of your beef supply**, you don’t have a free market.
You have a **national security vulnerability disguised as a supply chain**.
JBS bribed its way into America. National Beef rode in on Brazilian state capital. Both benefit from **monopoly power, regulatory capture, and government contracts**.
Meanwhile, **500,000 American cattle ranchers** have disappeared since 1980.
The consolidation isn’t slowing. It’s accelerating. And every year, **more ranchers go under** while JBS and Marfrig post record profits.
The question isn’t whether we can afford to break up the Big Four.
**It’s whether we can afford not to.**
—
**Want to buy American beef from American ranchers?**
Find independent producers at
**[BeefMaps.com](https://beefmaps.com)**—where your dollar stays in America.
—
## PRIMARY SOURCES
– [Farm Action: Agriculture Consolidation Data
Hub](https://farmaction.us/agriculture-consolidation-data-hub/) – [Farm Action: Concentration Data (Beef CR4:
80-85%)](https://farmaction.us/concentrationdata/)
– [Farm Action: Behind the Brands – The Meatpacking
Monopoly](https://farmaction.us/behind-the-brands-the-meatpacking-monopoly-and-the-illusion-of-choice/) – [Farm Action: Checkoff
Corruption](https://farmaction.us/2023/04/12/checkoff-corruption/) – [InSight Crime: Cartel Cattle Laundering Investigation
(2022)](https://insightcrime.org/)
– [USDA NASS: Census of Agriculture
(2002-2022)](https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/index.php) – [Meat + Poultry: Bipartisan Call to Ban JBS from USDA
Contracts](https://www.meatpoultry.com/)
– [DOL: JBS Child Labor Violations and $4M Settlement
(2025)](https://www.dol.gov/)
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*Research conducted under the Beef Research Protocol | Tier VI (Monopoly Mask-Off) with national security framing*
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