By Brazil Stock Guide – JBS (NYSE: JBS; B3: JBSS32) is usually analyzed through familiar market variables: the U.S. cattle cycle, chicken margins, Brazilian exports, grain costs, leverage and capital discipline. But recent bank reports have highlighted a less obvious layer of the story: protein is no longer just an animal commodity. It is also becoming a bet on consumption, nutrition and convenience.
The company remains, first and foremost, a global giant in beef, chicken and pork. That base still drives most of its earnings. But reports published after the company’s investor meeting in New York this week connected JBS to trends that go beyond traditional animal protein: high-protein foods, eggs, salmon, snacks, ready meals, protein drinks, functional ingredients, bioactive peptides and alternative proteins.
That shift does not eliminate the cycles. U.S. beef remains under pressure, chicken still faces excess supply in some markets, and cash generation remains central to the investment story. What is changing is the framework. Instead of looking only at cattle availability or chicken breast prices, part of the debate is now about how JBS can capture global protein demand in higher-value categories.
That demand is backed by significant numbers. In its investor presentation, JBS cited estimates that the high-protein food market is expected to grow at an annual rate of about 8% between 2025 and 2034. The company also pointed to expectations of more than 20 million GLP-1 users in the United States between 2025 and 2030, with annual growth of 25%, a trend that could reshape eating habits and reinforce demand for more protein-dense foods.
The same presentation showed that U.S. Google searches for “high-protein” have increased eightfold since 2010, that 23% of Americans follow a high-protein diet and that 70% say they actively try to consume protein. For the food industry, protein has moved beyond being just an ingredient or a category. It has become a consumer language.
That is the context in which analysts began paying attention to areas that, in other cycles, might have seemed secondary. Itaú BBA, for example, wrote that the company presented “new frontiers in protein beyond the traditional portfolio,” highlighting biotechnology, alternative proteins and cultivated ingredients aimed at categories such as protein bars, beverages and supplements.
For Itaú BBA analysts Gustavo Troyano, Bruno Tomazetto and Ryu Matsuyama, JBS remains alert to evolving consumer habits and has been adapting its portfolio to new demand patterns. The bank said the company is positioning itself to capture opportunities outside its traditional core, using its global scale to support execution and diversification.
Eggs are the clearest example of this new layer. Stephens, in a report signed by Pooran Sharma, described Mantiqueira as a “global growth platform,” with operations in Brazil and the United States, capacity of about 30 million birds and a position among the world’s four largest egg producers.
But the most interesting point is not just shell eggs. Stephens highlighted the platform’s exposure to brands and early innovation in functional protein, including N.OVO, an egg-white-based drink with 17 grams of protein, zero lactose and zero fat. According to the bank, higher value-added egg products could become more relevant within the strategy over time, even if the immediate focus remains on optimizing the existing base and evaluating M&A opportunities.
Morgan Stanley reached a similar conclusion. For Ricardo Alves, Lucas Mussi and Henrique Morello, the Mantiqueira joint venture adds “another avenue of growth” for JBS, with potential synergies with existing businesses and favorable tailwinds from the protein and health trend, including branded eggs and egg-based protein shakes.
That helps explain why eggs may carry more symbolic weight than their current size within the group. The category combines affordable protein, branding, recurring consumption and the possibility of functional products. For a company historically associated with industrial scale and fresh meat, eggs and protein drinks serve as a bridge to a higher value-added story.
Biotechnology follows the same logic. JBS’s presentation cited GENU-IN, focused on bioactive peptides in Brazil; JBS Biotech, with a research structure and pilot plant; and BioTech Foods, in Spain, focused on alternative proteins. The company also mentioned functional and bioactive ingredients for supplements, protein bars, beverages, shakes and nutritional products.
It is still a small front compared with the company’s consolidated scale, but it is relevant to the long-term narrative. Functional ingredients, alternative proteins and bioactive peptides do not replace beef, chicken or pork. They expand the map of where the company can seek margin, growth and lower dependence on traditional cycles.
BMO Capital Markets also highlighted this broader direction. Andrew Strelzik wrote that management discussed initiatives to support a portfolio diversification strategy “while limiting margin volatility.” For a company exposed to cycles, that is an essential part of the story: diversification is not only about growth, but also about smoothing results.
That search for lower volatility also appears in prepared foods. At Pilgrim’s Pride, controlled by JBS, Stephens noted that the business continues to shift toward more stable and higher-margin areas of the chicken chain, such as case-ready products, prepared foods, deboning, brands and value-added items. The bank cited Just Bare as the clearest example of consumer connection, with significant market-share gains in recent years, and Fridge Raiders in the United Kingdom as a platform tied to protein snacking.
In Brazil, Seara is the most visible showcase of this movement. The unit received about R$ 10 billion in investments between 2021 and 2025, expanding capacity in poultry, pork and value-added products, and advancing in categories such as frozen pizza, cold cuts, ready meals, chicken cuts and air fryer-focused lines.
For Itaú BBA, “strong brand and innovation” continue to drive Seara’s market-share gains. The bank highlighted that the brand’s household penetration in Brazil rose to 94% from 76% since 2017, while repeat purchases increased to 93% from 79%. Analysts see the unit as moving beyond a capex cycle and into a story of execution in brand, mix and margins.
Salmon has also entered this map of new proteins. In Australia, JBS controls Huon, a premium-positioned salmon business. Morgan Stanley noted that the Australian operation already has a portfolio more concentrated in value-added products and brands than other JBS units, with Primo and Huon as examples. The company’s presentation cited expansion plans for Huon, including an increase in harvest volume to 46,000 tonnes per year and investments in salmon-farming technology.
Australia plays another role in the analysts’ view: it shows how JBS can combine traditional animal protein, brands, exports, premiumization and technology. The business is still mostly beef, but it also includes prepared foods, lamb, pork and salmon. According to Morgan Stanley, about one-third of the Australian portfolio is already in branded or value-added products, a higher share than estimated for other company operations.
The challenge is that eggs, salmon, protein drinks and biotechnology are still too small to change JBS’s consolidated earnings in the short term. Most EBITDA will continue to come from the large beef, chicken, pork and prepared-foods platforms. In a challenging year like 2026, investors will still focus first on cash generation, leverage, U.S. margins and capital discipline.
JBS’s own decision to cut 2026 capex by $400 million shows that the company needs to choose its growth pace carefully. New protein fronts help broaden the story, but they also raise a practical question: which of them can gain scale, which will remain long-term bets, and how much capital will be needed to turn innovation into EBITDA.
Even so, the inclusion of eggs, salmon and biotechnology in the debate is relevant. It suggests that the next phase of the protein industry may not be only about producing more meat, but about delivering protein in more formats, with more branding, more convenience, more nutritional function and closer proximity to the consumer.
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