JBS USA - History

History

The meat packaging company was founded in 1855 by Gustavus Franklin Swift in Chicago, Illinois. It had even earlier origins in Eastham, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod before moving to Chicago., In addition to meatpacking, Swift sold various dairy and grocery items, including Lazy Maple bacon, Brown 'N Serve breakfast sausage, Swiftning shortening, Allsweet margarine, Brookfield butter, cheese under the Brookfield, Pauly and Treasure Cave brands, and Peter Pan peanut butter. Swift began selling frozen turkeys under the Butterball brand in 1954.

Swift began moving into other fields, including insurance and petroleum, in the 1960s, and formed a holding company, Esmark, in 1973. Two years later, Esmark bought International Playtex from Meshulam Riklis' Rapid-American Corporation.

Esmark left the petroleum business in 1980, selling Vickers Petroleum to Mobil, while Swift's fresh meat business was spun off as a separate company, Swift Independent Packing Company (SIPCO) the same year. Esmark went on to purchase Norton Simon Inc. in 1983 before being purchased by Beatrice Foods the next year. ConAgra purchased half of Swift in 1988 and the other half in 1990, the same year ConAgra bought Beatrice Foods.

In 2009, JBS USA acquired 63% of Pilgrim's Pride Chicken Company. That brand has been renamed as Pilgrim's. Since then JBS increased its share to 67%.