Attorney General James Secures $1.1 Million for Climate-Smart Agriculture from World’s Largest Beef Producer

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced a $1.1 million settlement with JBS USA Food Company and JBS USA Food Company Holdings (JBS USA), the American subsidiary of the JBS Group, the world’s largest producer of beef products, for allegedly misleading the public about its commitment to reducing its carbon footprint. Attorney General James sued JBS USA in 2024, after an Office of the Attorney General (OAG) investigation revealed that it was advertising that the JBS Group would reach “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, despite having no plan to actually achieve it. Under the settlement, JBS USA will pay $1.1 million to support climate-smart agriculture programs that help New York farmers adopt best practices to reduce emissions, increase resiliency, and enhance productivity. JBS USA has also agreed to reform its environmental marketing practices and report annually to OAG for three years. 

“New Yorkers deserve the truth when it comes to the environmental impact of the products they buy,” said Attorney General James. “JBS USA made sweeping promises about its parent company’s climate impacts despite the company having no real plan to back those promises up. My office will always hold companies accountable when they mislead New Yorkers and harm our planet.” 

Beef production emits the most greenhouse gases of any major food commodity, and animal agriculture accounts for at least 14.5 percent of annual global greenhouse gas emissions. In 2021, the JBS Group reported total global greenhouse gas emissions of over 71 million tons, more than the total emissions of many countries. 

Attorney General James sued JBS USA in February 2024 for violating New York’s consumer protection laws by falsely advertising that the JBS Group would achieve “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. In reality, an OAG investigation showed that the JBS Group had no viable plan or factual basis to reach such a goal and, instead, was making plans to increase production – thereby increasing its carbon footprint. The OAG found that when JBS USA announced its “Net Zero by 2040” commitment, the JBS Group had not yet calculated the company’s total greenhouse gas emissions, nor had it developed a plan to execute the commitment or determined whether it was economically or technologically feasible. Despite this, JBS USA publicly represented that its commitment was achievable and that it had a plan to meet its target. 

In her lawsuit, Attorney General James alleged that JBS USA used greenwashing and misleading statements to capitalize on consumers’ increasing desire to make environmentally friendly choices, including: 

• “Agriculture can be part of the climate solution. Bacon, chicken wings, and steak with net zero emissions. It’s possible.”
• “We will cut our own emissions by 30% in 2030 and eliminate Amazon deforestation from our supply chain within five years.”
• “JBS will achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions, reducing its direct and indirect emissions and offsetting all residual emissions.”

JBS USA continued to make these false claims despite receiving a warning from the Better Business Bureau National Programs’ National Advertising Division (NAD), which determined that the company’s evidence did not support the net-zero claims it was making to consumers. The NAD recommended that JBS USA stop making these net-zero claims in its advertising, a recommendation later affirmed by the National Advertising Review Board. 

Attorney General James has secured $1.1 million from JBS USA, which will fund independent, science-based initiatives supporting climate goals across New York. The funds will be directed to promoting climate-smart agriculture on New York farms, with the exact recipient to be determined in the coming months. The OAG will work with the funding recipient to prioritize support for New York farms that lost federal funding to supply food to food banks. In addition, Attorney General James is requiring JBS USA to immediately stop making deceptive or unsubstantiated environmental claims and placing JBS USA under OAG monitoring for three years. As part of this monitoring, JBS USA must submit annual compliance reports to OAG, verifying adherence to the agreement.  

Agriculture is a significant contributor to climate change. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that agriculture emits over 660 million metric tons of greenhouse gases annually – or roughly 10 percent of all U.S. emissions. Climate-smart agricultural practices offer tools for farmers to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, make their operations more resilient in the face of increasingly severe climate events, and maintain or increase their productivity in the face of accelerating climate change.

The case was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Rita McDonough and Ashley M. Gregor, Special Assistant Attorney General Libby Dimenstein, and Science Policy Fellow Maggie DeLessio of the Environmental Protection Bureau, and Assistant Attorney General Ben Fishman of the Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau. The Environmental Protection Bureau is led by Bureau Chief Lemuel Srolovic and Deputy Bureau Chief Monica Wagner and is part of the Division for Social Justice, led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Meghan Faux. The Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau is led by Bureau Chief Jane M. Azia and Deputy Bureau Chief Laura J. Levine and is part of the Division for Economic Justice, led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Chris D’Angelo. Both the Division for Economic Justice and the Division for Social Justice are overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.

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