Warren Pushes Giant Meat Processor Pilgrim’s Pride, Largest Donor to the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, on Potential Corruption
Pilgrim’s Pride was the single largest donor to the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee
“I am concerned Pilgrim’s Pride may have made its contribution to the inaugural fund to curry favor with the Trump administration.”
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) wrote to Fabio Sandri, the CEO of Pilgrim’s Pride, and Wesley Batista Filho, the CEO of JBS USA (the parent company of Pilgrim’s Pride), pushing them on the reason Pilgrim’s Pride provided the single largest donation to the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee. The company’s $5 million donation amounts to more than the contributions from Apple’s CEO plus Amazon, Meta, and Google combined.
“I am concerned Pilgrim’s Pride may have made its contribution to the inaugural fund to curry favor with the Trump administration,” wrote Senator Warren.
Given the meat companies’ history of potential antitrust and price-fixing violations, the senator pointed out that Pilgrim’s Pride and JBS could benefit from favorable treatment from the current administration, especially since the company is currently the subject of several ongoing federal investigations.
Pilgrim’s Pride and JBS have already benefited from Trump administration decisions:
- After close to a decade of attempting to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, last month, JBS received approval from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to list the company’s shares on the exchange.
- The Department of Justice announced that it would suspend enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a law that JBS previously violated.
- The Department of Agriculture recently decided to waive certain workplace safety requirements for poultry and pork producers and to stop collecting related worker safety data—a move that puts workers at risk while boosting the profits of major meat processors like Pilgrim’s Pride.
“The SEC’s decision, made just months after the donation from Pilgrim’s Pride, raises questions regarding undue influence,” wrote the senator. “Your large donations and direct stake in federal policies and enforcement actions, and the Trump Administration’s series of actions that benefit your companies, raise serious concerns about a potential quid-pro-quo arrangement. Congress and the public deserve answers.”
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