Mighty Earth has filed a lawsuit against the US unit of Brazilian meat giant JBS accusing the company of greenwashing over its emissions targets.
The environmental advocacy group said the suit has been filed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, alleging the US-based business unit is attempting to deceive the public with “false and misleading” claims it can reach net zero by 2040.
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JBS USA, as the subsidiary is called, currently claims on its website that it will achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040 across its global operations.
However, Mighty Earth said in a statement that JBS is making the pledge “despite documented global expansion plans and GHG reduction targets that cover just 3% of parent company JBS Group’s total emissions”.
Alex Wijeratna, senior director of investigations and law at Mighty Earth, said: “We’re challenging JBS USA’s climate claims to be net zero by 2040 as false and misleading. The world’s largest meatpacker doesn’t have any credible plan to tackle a staggering 97% of the greenhouse gas emissions found in its meat supply chains.
“JBS is linked to over a million of acres of Amazon deforestation and it spews more climate-damaging methane each year than oil giants ExxonMobil and Shell combined.”
Wijeratna added: “JBS is a climate super polluter, and yet it’s trying to hoodwink the public with misleading happy talk about its false climate goals.”
According to Mighty Earth, the JBS group target only covers Scope 1 and 2 emissions but does not include reductions to Scope 3, which it claims, represent 97% of its total emissions, .
As a result, it alleges that that JBS USA is “deceiving the Washington public with feel-good promises of net-zero emissions” that the company has “neither the intention nor the capability of fulfilling”.
Contacted by Just Food for a response, JBS said in a statement: “As a global food company, JBS recognises its role in helping to address the risks and impacts of climate change.
“Our publicly available 2024 Sustainability Report outlines measurable progress, including a 20.3% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions intensity since 2019, and the implementation of over $188m in emissions-reduction projects at JBS operated facilities around the world.”
It added: “We categorically reject any claims suggesting that our sustainability goals are misleading or that our financing was obtained under false pretences.
“Our actions are guided by science, transparency, and accountability, and we remain focused on delivering measurable, meaningful progress toward a more sustainable global food system.”
Mighty Earth also alleges that JBS is violating consumer protection laws, claiming that it has made “material omissions about the environmental harm and deforestation caused by its operations in Brazil violate the D.C. Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA)”.
The development comes as Greenpeace alleged that JBS indirectly purchased cattle raised on protected indigenous land in the Amazon rainforest.
