The US unit of Brazilian meat giant JBS has settled a greenwashing lawsuit with the New York attorney general’s office.
The agreement with Attorney General Letitia James requires JBS USA to pay $1.1m to fund “climate‑smart” agricultural programmes for New York farms.
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The settlement requires the meatpacker to change its environmental marketing practices and immediately cease “deceptive” or “unsubstantiated” environmental statements.
JBS said the settlement “does not reflect an admission of wrongdoing”, adding it “remains driven to advance sustainable agriculture”.
In a statement, the New York Attorney General’s office said the company will also be subject to monitoring for three years and has to submit annual compliance reports to the office.
As part of the settlement, JBS has agreed to characterise its 2040 net‑zero ambition as a “goal” rather than a “commitment” or “pledge.”
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By GlobalDataIt also agreed to specify steps it is taking when making consumer‑facing statements that it is “taking real action” or using similar language.
“JBS USA made sweeping promises about its parent company’s climate impacts despite the company having no real plan to back those promises up,” James said on Monday (3 November), announcing the statement.
JBS announced a plan in 2021 to “achieve net‑zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040” and had engaged with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
According to the attorney general’s findings, JBS and SBTi failed to agree on methodology and standards. After SBTi denied an extension request, the meat processor withdrew from the validation process.
The attorney general sued the meat processor in February last year, alleging the firm engaged in “greenwashing” and used “misleading” statements to exploit consumer demand for environmentally friendly products.
The complaint stated that the meatpacker held “no viable plan” or “factual basis” to achieve its 2040 net-zero goal.
The office further alleged JBS failed to evaluate the economic and technical feasibility of its target before publicising the plan.
JBS sought dismissal of the lawsuit in May last year and the New York State Supreme Court dismissed it “without prejudice” in January, allowing James’ office to amend its complaint.
After the dismissal, the attorney general’s office issued an investigative subpoena to JBS USA this February.
Last month, NGO Mighty Earth filed a lawsuit against JBS USA accusing the company of greenwashing over its emissions targets.
Alex Wijeratna, Mighty Earth’s senior director for investigations and law, called JBS’s settlement with the New York attorney general “highly significant”.
“We now need JBS to go all the way and drop all its false and misleading net zero climate claims across its entire global portfolio,” Wijeratna added.
