JBS taps Wesley Filho as CEO as founding family retakes top post

The last member of the Batista family to serve as JBS chief executive was Jose Batista Sobrinho, the company's founder and father of Wesley and Joesley Batista. He was replaced by Tomazoni in 2018.

The family stepped back from leadership roles after the Batista brothers became embroiled in a corruption scandal in Brazil. Both were arrested in connection with allegations of insider trading linked to a sealed plea agreement and were later acquitted. The brothers returned to JBS's board in 2024.

Batista Filho is the son of Wesley Batista, who, together with his brother Joesley Batista, controls J&F, the family holding company that controls JBS.

"This is a transition defined by continuity," Batista Filho told Reuters. "A new CEO often needs time to understand the business and set a direction. That is not the case here. This transition should be very straightforward."

He joined JBS in 2011 and has held senior roles across several of the company's main businesses, including beef and poultry operations in Brazil and activities in Uruguay, Paraguay and Canada, before taking over JBS USA in 2023.

Batista Filho said JBS would focus on expanding in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Oceania, following a deal in Indonesia last week, while also investing in higher-value products and growing its egg and fish businesses.

Brazil's JBS, the world's largest meatpacker, said on Monday it had named Wesley Batista Filho as chief executive effective January 2027, marking its first CEO change in eight years and returning a member of the founding Batista family to the group's top operating role.