The Colorado attorney general joined an antitrust lawsuit filed Monday to stop a merger by two of the nation’s largest meatpackers.
Consumers and cattle producers would be harmed by the proposed acquisition of National Beef Packing Co. by JBS S.A., according to the suit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice and attorneys general of 13 states.
São Paulo, Brazil-based JBS owns the major meat processing plant in Greeley that until recently operated under the name Swift & Co. The name has been changed to JBS USA Inc.
“This merger has the potential to significantly increase the price of beef for Colorado families, and to alter the important role that cattle production plays in Colorado,” Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said in a statement. “This industry is too vital to Colorado’s economy for the state to allow this anti-competitive conglomeration to take place.”
JBS became the third-largest beef processor in the U.S. last year after purchasing Swift & Co. for $225 million.
In March, JBS said it planned to acquire Kansas City, Mo.-based National Beef for $560 million, which would make it the nation’s largest beef processor.
The lawsuit filed Monday does not seek to stop JBS’ proposed acquisition of another meatpacker, Smithfield Beef Group Inc., the nation’s fifth-largest beef producer, for $565 million.
JBS USA’s Greeley-based chief executive officer, Wesley Batista, said he disagrees with the anti-competitive claims in the lawsuit.
“This transaction is highly pro-competitive and will generate significant efficiencies and synergies that will benefit our cattle suppliers and our beef customers,” he said. “We believe the government’s case is misplaced and we look forward to defending this matter in court.”
Steve Raabe: 303-954-1948 or sraabe@denverpost.com
