By Roberto Samora
SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazilian meatpacker JBS on Thursday announced investments of $70 million in Paraguay over the next two years, including the acquisition of a chicken processing plant, according to a statement.
The acquisition of Paraguayan chicken brand Pollos Amanecer, which owns a poultry plant in the Doctor Juan Eulogio Estigarribia district, from firm Campo 9 represents the first phase of JBS’s new investment cycle in Paraguay, it said.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
JBS is the world’s largest meat producer, employing more than 280,000 people in countries such as Brazil, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico and Australia.
The move, announced during the visit of Paraguayan President Santiago Peña to a plant of JBS in Brazil, marks JBS’s return to Paraguay after the company sold cattle slaughterhouses in 2017 to Brazilian rival Minerva.
KEY QUOTES
“We are confident that this operation will be a growth engine for the country,” said JBS Chief Executive Officer Gilberto Tomazoni in a statement, adding the move would also accelerate “Paraguay’s presence in the global chicken market.”
“Paraguay offers good conditions for the development of poultry farming, and this investment reinforces our strategy of increasing the company’s competitiveness and diversification,” the CEO said.
BY THE NUMBERS
After expansion and modernization works, the plant will reach a processing capacity of 100,000 birds per day, said JBS, noting the goal is to keep supplying the domestic market and also kick off exports from the unit.
The production complex currently has 19 poultry sheds, and the plan is to reach a total of 139 when the expansion is completed, the company said.
The complex will include 28 farms for genetic material, hatcheries, and a feed mill, according to JBS.
At full capacity, the plant will operate with approximately 1,100 employees, including manufacturing and administrative staff, it added.
(Reporting by Roberto Samora in Sao Paulo; Writing by Andre Romani; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
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