JBS faces Dutch court challenge over $6bn expansion climate risks
Greenpeace is using JBS's recent relocation to the Netherlands to force the meat giant to disclose the climate and social risks of its $6bn global expansion, opening a new front in corporate climate litigation.
JBS, the world’s largest meat company, will face a Dutch court petition demanding it disclose how a $6bn global expansion plan aligns with legal obligations to protect the climate, nature, and human rights. The legal challenge, filed by Greenpeace in the Netherlands where JBS moved its headquarters last year, targets the company’s lack of transparency regarding its environmental footprint.
The case highlights the regulatory risks multinational companies face when relocating to European jurisdictions to access capital markets. JBS shifted its base from Brazil to the Netherlands as part of a strategy to list on the New York Stock Exchange, a move that allowed the founding Batista brothers to raise their ownership stake.
“We say that if you come to the Netherlands, you have to play by Dutch rules and be held to account to Dutch standards,” said Richard Brown, legal counsel at Greenpeace International. The NGO argues this relocation exposed the company to stricter transparency requirements and a "duty of care" under Dutch law.
At the core of the dispute is JBS’s planned $2.5bn investment in six massive meat-processing plants in Nigeria, a move viewed as a bridgehead into the African market. Civil society groups warn there has been no meaningful assessment of the social or environmental consequences, including the impact on smallholder farmers and domestic food security.
The Niger state government has already promised 1.2m hectares to the company. “This is the biggest agriculture investment that I have heard of in Nigeria’s history but there have been few details and no consultation for civil society,” said Elujulo Opeyemi, spokesperson for Youth in Agroecology and Restoration Network.
The lawsuit marks a significant escalation in climate-related legal action, shifting the focus from fossil fuel producers to the agriculture sector. Until now, similar litigation strategies have been largely restricted to oil and gas majors like TotalEnergies and Shell.
Investors are likely to note the complaint arrives amid growing scepticism over JBS’s environmental commitments. The company recently abandoned its "net zero by 2040" pledge, missed a deadline to clean up its Brazilian beef supply chain by the end of 2025, and excluded indirect methane emissions from its latest sustainability report.
Greenpeace views the information request as a precursor to formal litigation. “The primary objective is to challenge JBS’s business model and expansion model,” Brown said. “We have a suspicion that they’re flying blind and not pulling together the information they need to understand the impacts.” JBS stated it “does not comment on potential legal proceedings of which it has not been notified”.
