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JBS Faces A Brutal Beef Paradox Investors Can’t Ignore!

JBS N.V. is facing one of the strangest contradictions in the food business: Americans are paying record prices for beef, yet the world’s largest meat processor is closing plants and cutting capacity. The company recently announced plans to shut its beef-processing plant in Souderton, Pennsylvania, and a value-added facility in Memphis, Tennessee, shifting production to other locations in its network. On the surface, that sounds illogical. Fresh beef and steak prices are near record highs, and demand remains resilient. But the economics underneath are far more difficult. The U.S. cattle herd has fallen to its lowest level in decades after drought, high feed costs, and slow herd rebuilding. That means processors are paying more for fewer cattle while spreading labor, logistics, and plant costs across lower volumes. JBS’s latest earnings call confirmed that this is not just a pricing story — it is a supply, margin, and capacity problem.