Last night, JBS SA issued a statement saying it had made “significant progress in resolving the cyberattack” and the “vast majority” of its shuttered beef, pork, poultry and prepared food plants will be operational today. The company was hit by a ransomware attack by a criminal organization likely based in Russia that resulted in the halt of slaughter at its plants in the U.S. and Australia early this week.
JBS is the world’s largest meatpacker and it controls around 25% of all U.S. beef capacity and roughly 20% of its hog slaughter capacity.
USDA reached out to several major meat processors and encouraged them to keep supplies moving and slaughter additional livestock when possible. The White House says it is directly engaged with the Russian government in the matter.