Minerva Foods
Minerva S.A.
TypePublicly traded company
B3: BEEF3[1][2]
IndustryFood
GenrePublic company
Founded 1924 (1924-age)
FounderAntonio de Pádua Diniz
HeadquartersBarretos, Brazil
Number of locations
Worldwide
ProductsBeef production
Fresh and frozen meat
Bovine-derived products
Processed meat
Sales of leather and live cattle
RevenueIncrease R$ 28.5 billion (2021)[2]
Increase R$ 2.41 billion (2021)[2]
Decrease R$ 599 million (2021)[2]
Total assetsIncrease R$ 20.7 billion (2021)[2]
OwnerVilela de Queiroz Family
Number of employees
+21,000 (2021)[2]
Websitewww.minervafoods.com

Minerva Foods is a Brazilian food company founded in 1924 in the city of Barretos, São Paulo.[3]

The company is specializes in the trading of fresh beef, leather, derivatives, and the export of live cattle, as well as meat processing.

It is the second-largest beef company in Brazil and Uruguay and the largest beef exporter[4] in Paraguay, Colombia, and Argentina. It sells its products in over 100 countries.[5]

Minerva operates 26 slaughter and deboning plants (11 in Brazil, 3 in Paraguay, 2 in Uruguay, 1 in Colombia, and 5 in Argentina) and three processing plants, with a daily capacity to slaughter and debone approximately 54,000 heads of cattle.[5]

History

In 1924, the "Charqueada Minerva" was founded in Barretos, São Paulo, by Antonio de Pádua Diniz. The founder passed away the following year, and in 1926, due to financial problems, the company was put up for auction, which was then acquired by Antonio Manço Bernardes in partnership with Américo Grilli.

In 1949, after a reform that expanded the slaughter capacity to 300 heads per day, the company was named "Matadouro Industrial Minerva" (Minerva Industrial Slaughterhouse).

In 1971, the company was renamed "Frigorífico Minerva" (Minerva Slaughterhouse). During the 1980s, the company faced financial difficulties and went bankrupt.[6]

In 1992, the bankrupt estate of Frigorífico Minerva was acquired by the Vilela de Queiroz family, well known in the livestock transportation sector, establishing the Indústria e Comércio de Carnes Minerva Ltda.

In 1999, Minerva leased and acquired a processing and slaughtering unit in José Bonifácio, São Paulo. In 2001, it leased another slaughtering and processing unit in Cajamar, São Paulo.

In 2004, the company built and inaugurated a new and modern slaughter and processing unit in Palmeiras de Goiás, Goiás. In 2006, Minerva leased a massacre and processing unit in Batayporã, Mato Grosso do Sul.

In 2007, it began construction in Barretos, São Paulo, of an industrial unit for producing cooked and frozen meat in a joint venture with the Irish company Dawn Farms. In the same year, it started the construction of a new unit in Rolim de Moura, Rondônia, and acquired industrial units in Araguaína, Tocantins, and Redenção, Pará.[7]

In 2008, it acquired the Lord Meat slaughterhouse in Goianésia, Goiás, for approximately R$60 million.[8]

In 2009, the cooked and frozen meat production plant was inaugurated, establishing the first Minerva Dawn Farms unit, a joint venture between Minerva and Dawn Farms Foods. The 15,400-square-meter factory can produce up to 15 tons of processed meat per hour. The new factory was built next to the headquarters of Frigorífico Minerva in Barretos, São Paulo.[9]

Controversies

Accusation of Purchasing Cattle from Deforested Areas

According to NGOs such as Greenpeace and Global Witness, Minerva Foods and other Brazilian meatpacking companies reportedly maintained a scheme throughout the year 2021 to purchase cattle from farms owned by Chaules Volban Pozzebon, the leader of a criminal organization involved in land invasion and extortion, known as the 'largest deforester in Brazil'. Minerva is accused of having bought at least 672 animals from farms implicated in environmental crimes.[10][11][12]

In a statement, Minerva Foods stated that they conducted a detailed assessment of each of the 16 mentioned farms and found no alleged non-conformities as claimed by the NGOs. According to the company, three of the mentioned farms were not registered in the company's database, and the remaining 13 fully complied with the sustainability criteria.[11][13]

References

  1. ↑ "BEEF3: Minerva SA/Brazil Stock Price Quote". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "2021 Results Report". Minerva Foods IR. 2022-02-23. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  3. ↑ "A Empresa - Minerva". 28 November 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  4. ↑ "Minerva Foods: Lessons from building the largest beef exporter in South America". 2021-05-07. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  5. 1 2 "Sector Overview 2021". Minerva Foods IR. 2022-02-21. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  6. ↑ Costa, Leopoldo (2011-03-28). "A HISTÓRIA PECUÁRIA DE BARRETOS". Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  7. ↑ CORRÊA, Domingos Sávio (2012). "Fusões e aquisições nos segmentos carne bovina, óleo de soja e sucroalcooleiro" (PDF). Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas da Universidade de São Paulo (FFLCH - USP). Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  8. ↑ "Minerva acquires Lord Meat slaughterhouse in Goiás". G1. 2008-02-26. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  9. ↑ "Minerva Dawn Farms inaugurates plant in Barretos". BeefPoint. 2009-03-20. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
  10. ↑ "JBS Admits to Having Purchased Nearly 9 Thousand Illegal Cattle from the 'Country's Largest Deforester'". Reporter Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). 11 October 2022. Retrieved 14 November 2022.
  11. 1 2 "JBS, Marfrig, and Minerva Purchased Cattle from Deforested Areas, Says NGO". Exame Magazine. O Globo. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  12. ↑ "Brazil Exports Cattle from Farms with Illegal Deforestation and Slave Labor". UOL. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  13. ↑ "NGO Claims Major Brazilian Meatpacking Companies Purchased Cattle from Illegal Deforested Areas in the Amazon". G1. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
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