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José Batista Sobrinho: Zé Mineiro and the Butcher Shop That Became JBS

From a one-room slaughterhouse in Goiás to Friboi and JBS, the story of the Brazilian butcher known as Zé Mineiro.

Who is José Batista Sobrinho?

José Batista Sobrinho, called Zé Mineiro, is the founder of the business that became JBS, the Brazilian meat company that grew into one of the largest food processors in the world. JBS's own history names him as the founder who planted the seeds of the company, and the group took its three-letter name in 2007 in his honor.

He is also reported to own cattle in his own right. Because he is living, this profile covers only his public business record.

From Minas Gerais to Goiás

A profile on the Brazilian business site A Boissa says he was born in Alfenas, in Minas Gerais, and at age 12 moved with his parents to Urataí, Goiás, where he earned the nickname Zé Mineiro, meaning Joe from Minas. It does not give a birth date.

In 1953 he and his brother opened Casa de Carnes Mineira, a small slaughterhouse in Anápolis. The profile says his brother bought the cattle and he did the slaughtering, starting with one animal a day. JBS's company history says the plant could process five cattle a day, so sources differ on the starting scale.

Brasília and the first Friboi plant

In 1957, attracted by tax incentives, the brothers moved to Brasília and supplied meat to construction sites during the building of the new capital. JBS counts him among the first beef suppliers to the city.

In 1970 the business bought its first beef plant, in Formosa, Goiás, its first unit under the federal inspection service. That year it adopted the Friboi name, a blend of frigorífico, the Portuguese word for a meatpacking plant, and boi, meaning ox.

Growing from one plant to a global company

JBS's history lists the steps: the Planaltina plant in 1980, which lifted daily processing from 100 to 300 animals; Luziânia in 1988; Anápolis in 1993, with the first deboning room; Goiânia in 1996, with the first exports; Barra dos Garças in 1997; and Andradina in São Paulo state in 1999.

After that the company went international. It bought Swift's Argentine operations in 2005, listed on the São Paulo stock exchange in 2007, and bought Swift in the United States and Australia that year. In 2008 it acquired the Five Rivers feedlots, with an annual capacity of two million animals. Growth continued through poultry, pork and leather.

The Key to His Success

The record shows a butcher who stayed close to the cattle and moved wherever demand was growing: first Anápolis, then Brasília's construction sites, then federally inspected plants that could ship farther. The lessons below are drawn from the company's history and the Boissa profile, and they leave out private motives.

The record also includes controversy, covered below.

  • Follow the demand: the 1957 move to Brasília put the business beside a new city's building boom.
  • Get inspected: the 1970 Formosa plant was the first under federal inspection, which opened bigger markets.
  • Buy plants one at a time: Planaltina, Luziânia, Anápolis, Goiânia and others added capacity.
  • Add value: the Anápolis plant's deboning room led to deboned beef sales.
  • Open exports early: the 1996 Goiânia plant made the first export.

Controversy and the 2017 return

His sons Wesley and Joesley, who ran the group as J&F Investimentos, were arrested in a corruption case, and A Boissa reports the JBS board unanimously decided to bring Zé Mineiro back to command the group in 2017. The same report says a leniency agreement with the Federal Public Ministry requires payments totaling R$10.3 billion over 25 years. These details come from a single trade report and are given as reported.

Cattle holdings

A Compre Rural headline describes him as a rancher with 116,000 head in feedlots. The page itself could not be opened for this profile, so the figure is given only as a reported headline, without a date.

Sources and further reading

See the JBS company history for the timeline and the A Boissa profile of Zé Mineiro for his early life. The headline on cattle is at Compre Rural. For related stories, see the ranching section of farm.FM or a farm.FM story about Brazilian beef.

Timeline

  1. 1953Opens Casa de Carnes Mineira in Anápolis, Goiás
  2. 1957Moves to Brasília to supply construction sites
  3. 1970Buys the first beef plant, in Formosa, Goiás; adopts the Friboi name
  4. 1980Buys the Planaltina plant, raising daily processing from 100 to 300 animals
  5. 1996Buys the Goiânia plant and makes the first export
  6. 2007Company takes the JBS name and lists on the São Paulo stock exchange
  7. 2008JBS acquires the Five Rivers feedlots
  8. 2017Returns to lead the JBS group after his sons' arrests, per A Boissa

Frequently asked questions

Who is José Batista Sobrinho?

José Batista Sobrinho, known as Zé Mineiro, founded the business that became Friboi and JBS. He opened a small slaughterhouse in Anápolis, Goiás, in 1953 and moved into larger plants from 1970.

Where does the name Friboi come from?

JBS says Friboi, adopted in 1970, combines frigorífico, Portuguese for meatpacking plant, with boi, meaning ox. The company took the JBS name in 2007 in honor of its founder.

How did JBS start?

It started in 1953 with Casa de Carnes Mineira, a small slaughterhouse in Anápolis, Goiás. Sources differ on whether it handled one animal or five cattle a day at the start.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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