Greenpeace Luxembourg Protests JBS as Concerns Grow over Amazon, EU-Mercosur Deal

On Tuesday 29 April 2025, Greenpeace Luxembourg staged a protest outside the headquarters of J&F Investments Luxembourg Sàrl, a holding company of JBS, coinciding with the annual general meeting of JBS shareholders in São Paulo, Brazil.

According to Greenpeace Luxembourg, this demonstration was part of a series of coordinated actions across multiple countries, including Brazil, the Netherlands, Sweden and Italy, targeting JBS and its subsidiaries.

Greenpeace Luxembourg campaigner, Martina Holbach, stated: "JBS and its insatiable appetite for money embody everything that is wrong with industrial agriculture. Its supply chain destroys vital ecosystems such as the Amazon. Its colossal emissions, particularly methane, are also comparable to those of some fossil fuel companies.”

The protest occurred shortly after the US Securities and Exchange Commission approved JBS's application to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange. This listing is part of a restructuring plan involving the relocation of JBS's headquarters from Brazil to the Netherlands, which would increase the Batista brothers' voting rights from 48% to nearly 85% through J&F Investments Luxembourg Sàrl Greenpeace expressed concern that this restructuring could limit minority shareholders' ability to influence the company on environmental and human rights issues.

Greenpeace Luxembourg noted that JBS has established “significant” financial operations in Luxembourg, despite employing only a few people and lacking operational sites in the Grand Duchy. The organisation highlighted that JBS's Luxembourg-based holding companies own many of the group's most profitable activities in key markets worldwide.

Martina Holbach added: "JBS's agribusiness empire has been built on corruption, broken promises, and environmental destruction. It should not be rewarded with a listing on the New York Stock Exchange that will fill the pockets of its billionaire executives and finance a global expansion that will further plunge the planet into climate chaos." Greenpeace is calling for the suspension of JBS's stock market listing and urging financial regulators to strengthen their oversight. The organisation also calls on governments to hold industrial agriculture accountable for the environmental damage it causes.

JBS is among the companies expected to benefit significantly from the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. According to French media reports, the multinational aims to strengthen its presence in Europe. In 2024, exports to the EU accounted for approximately 7% of its total exports. The increase in beef import quotas from Mercosur countries, as foreseen under the EU-Mercosur agreement, could potentially double Brazil’s beef exports to the EU, representing a major boost for the company. According to the Institut d’Élevage, the EU’s tariff reductions on beef imports would save Mercosur beef exporters an estimated €347 million per year. JBS and other large Brazilian meat exporters alone would save around €215 million annually.

EU Member States are expected to vote on the EU-Mercosur agreement in 2025. Greenpeace warns that the deal would further endanger the Amazon rainforest, which is already nearing the limits of its regenerative capacity. It also poses a threat to European farmers by increasing imports of cheap agricultural products, such as beef and poultry, from South America. 

Through a petition, Greenpeace is calling on the Luxembourg government to clearly reject the EU-Mercosur agreement.