JBS accused of greenwashing in SEC whistleblower complaint

Brazilian meat processing company JBS faces accusations of issuing $3.2 billion worth of “misleading and fraudulent” sustainability bonds in a whistleblower complaint filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Mighty Earth, an environmental advocacy group, said in a Jan. 17 press release it filed the complaint alleging JBS engaged in greenwashing with the bonds, which were issued in 2021. Mighty Earth said its SEC whistleblower complaint is the first issued against a sustainability-linked bond.

The complaint, which Compliance Week viewed, said the value of JBS’s sustainability-linked bonds, also known as “green bonds,” are tied to the company’s promise to reduce its overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and its goal to become “net zero” by 2040.