JBS Foods Canada is expanding its beef processing facility at Brooks.

Jul 12, 2024

Work is already underway on a new beef processing line and warehouse expansion.

The $90 million investment includes a new patty processing line and a state-of-the-art fulfillment centre, that is expected to be completed for the fall of 2025.

With the expansion, JBS Canada will produce almost seven million more kilograms of beef patties every year for restaurants in Western Canada.

Premier Danielle Smith says JBS is a cornerstone in Brooks, creating jobs and ensuring Alberta’s world-renowned beef makes it to the millions who love to eat it.

"This expansion is great news for JBS, Brooks and Alberta as a whole, showing the importance of our Agri-Processing Investment Tax Credit. Our local and provincial economies are growing and that’s exciting to see.”

Stats show that in 2023, Alberta beef production totalled almost one million tonnes, with meat product sales of $12.2 billion.

JBS President Celio Fritche says they are pleased to be investing in the Brooks beef processing facility.

"It significantly enhances our value-added processing and fulfilment capabilities and was possible in no small part due to Alberta’s tax credit for agri-processors.”

The Province designed the program to attract large scale investment in agri-food manufacturing, by offering a tax credit to corporations that invest at least $10 million in a project to build or expand a value-added agri-processing facility in Alberta. The program offers a 12 per cent non-refundable tax credit based on eligible capital expenditures.

Agriculture and Irrigation Minister RJ Sigurdson says the tax credit program is building on Alberta’s existing competitive advantages for agri-food companies and the primary producers that supply them.

"This facility expansion will allow JBS Canada to increase its beef production capacity, which means more Alberta beef patties on the grill in restaurants across the country.”

Beef is Alberta's largest agri-food export at $3.9 billion in 2023.

Overall, the province has the country's largest cattle herd at an estimated 5.26 million head as of July 1, 2023.

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Video: What Does 20 MILLION Hogs a Year Look Like?

?? The Multi-Plant System Processing 20 Million Hogs Annually in the Midwest JBS USA operates multiple large-scale pork processing facilities across the Midwest, including major plants in Iowa, Minnesota, and Indiana. Combined, these facilities have the capacity to process approximately 20 million hogs annually.

Each plant operates high-speed automated slaughter systems capable of processing up to 20,000 head per day, followed by fabrication lines that break carcasses into primals, sub-primals, and case-ready retail products.

Hog procurement is coordinated through electronic marketing platforms that connect regional contract finishing operations and independent producers to plant demand schedules. This digital procurement system allows for steady supply flow and scheduling efficiency across multiple facilities.

Processing plants incorporate comprehensive food safety systems, including pathogen intervention technologies, rapid chilling processes, and integrated cold-chain management. USDA inspection is embedded throughout the harvest and fabrication stages to ensure regulatory compliance and product integrity. Finished pork products — from bulk primals to retail-ready packaged cuts — are distributed through coordinated logistics networks serving domestic and export markets.