One of the owners of the Brazilian Giant of Refrigerators JBS met in particular with US President Donald Trump, about three weeks before Trump extended a surprising olive branch to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in his UN speech on Tuesday, three people with knowledge of the meeting told Reuters.
This meeting helped pave the way for Trump to adopt a more favorable tone to Lula at the United Nations General Assembly, two of the sources said.
On Tuesday, Trump praised the Brazilian president, despite months of discussions between the two leaders about what the White House called “Witch Hunt” in Brazil against former President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of Trump.
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“We had a good conversation and agreed to meet next week,” said Trump. “At least for about 39 seconds, we had excellent chemistry,” he added.
In July, the White House announced 50% rates on most Brazilian imports, including meat, which can shake the supply chain of food companies, including JBS and its subsidiary Pilgrim’s Pride.
It was in the following weeks that JBS co -owner Joesley Batista was able to set up a meeting with Trump, first reported by the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo.
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JBS refused to comment and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to one of the people with knowledge of the conversation, Batista told Trump that the rates he had imposed on Brazilian products were making beef very expensive for Americans.
The rates were cited by the White House as retaliation against what Trump believed was an unfair persecution of Bolsonaro, who this month was convicted of a coup attempt to remain in power after losing the 2022 election.
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Other meetings
JBS became a company listed in the United States in June, the change increased by the company’s exposure to the White House policy.
Pilgrim’s Pride, its bird-producing subsidiary, made a $ 5 million donation to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee, saying it had a “long bipartisan history of participation in the civic process.”
Joesley and his brother Wesley Batista were also seen several times with Lula at public events. Loans from the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) for JBS during Lula’s previous administration helped the company become the largest refrigerator in the world.
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Later, the Baptists admitted to giving bribes to 1,800 politicians as part of a broad anti -corruption investigation.
JBS states that meetings with civil servants are in accordance with its code of conduct.
Other business leaders in Brazil have met with Trump government officials in recent weeks to lobby for lower rates.
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Embraer’s chief executive, Francisco Gomes Neto, told Reuters earlier this month that he was trying to schedule meetings to discuss tariffs about aircraft manufacturer products.
The company obtained a victory when the White House excluded the plane parts from 50% tariffs imposed on most Brazilian products. But 10% rates still apply to Embraer products.
Neither Brazil nor the US authorities shared more details about a possible meeting between Trump and Lula next week.
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But Lula told Reporters in New York on Wednesday that he was willing to meet Trump personally and that they would put “everything on the table.”
“What was once impossible was no longer impossible and actually happened,” said Lula.
