US Senator Cory Booker Says Giant Meat Corporations Must Be 'Held Accountable'

US senator Cory Booker, who follows a plant-based diet, has criticized giant multinational meat corporations like JBS in a new video address.

Glenn Hurowitz, CEO of nature and climate advocacy group Mighty Earth, posted the clip to LinkedIn. In the short video, Booker states that huge meat companies have “for too long” engaged in practices including “fueling deforestation, undermining human rights, and devastating our climate and natural resources.” He added that we “need to make sure bad actors are held accountable.”.

The New Jersey politician went on to state that he is “proud to work in a bipartisan manner to crack down on these practices.”

Cory Booker criticizes JBS

The outside of the JBS offices in Brazil — CJPress BR / Alamy Stock Photo JBS is a major driver of Amazon deforestation

Booker cited Brazilian meat giant JBS in the video, which is the world’s largest meat processor. JBS is notorious for driving more than 2.4 million acres of Amazon deforestation and putting record amounts of methane in the atmosphere. The company’s estimated carbon footprint is higher than the entire country of Spain.

Despite this, JBS announced late last year that it would be seeking an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, which would give it access to far more capital than it already has. The move was heavily criticized by environmentalists, and Booker was one of its most prominent opponents. He led a bipartisan group of senators pressing the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to decline JBS’ Initial Public Offering (IPO) because of its “history of corruption and greenwashing.”

“Thanks to that pressure, JBS was forced to delay their listing, and I’m hopeful that they are beginning to take steps towards good governance and meeting their climate commitments,” Booker said in the video.

He went on to thank Mighty Earth for its help with the win, and for its work in applying pressure to corporations like JBS to crack down on unsustainable and unethical practices. “Please consider me a partner in this mission to end deforestation and ensure the fair treatment of workers,” he continued. “It is all about justice, justice for all.”

Cory Booker’s climate advocacy

Booker hasn’t eaten animal meat since the 1990s, and he has followed a plant-based diet since 2014. He has long advocated for alternatives proteins, including cell-based meat, and he often speaks about his hopes of moving to a more sustainable and ethical food system.

“Empathy is the most necessary ingredient in change,” he said during an appearance on podcast “Pod Save America” earlier this year. “You have to get people to know first — to confront the moral urgencies.”