JBS Was ‘So Behind’ as 128+ Pigs Died in Heat, Federal Records Reveal; PETA Calls for Changes
For Immediate Release:
October 22, 2026
Contact:
Sara Groves 202-483-7382
Newly obtained federal records reveal that at least 128 pigs died during the first shift at the JBS slaughterhouse in Marshalltown as temperatures reached 93 degrees July 27—and a federal veterinarian suspected the actual toll may have been higher. The records corroborate a whistleblower’s report to PETA that pigs were dying aboard trucks waiting to unload. In response, PETA today sent a letter to JBS Foods USA CEO Wesley Batista Filho calling on the company to prevent animals from being left on trucks in extreme weather.
According to the records, after PETA alerted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to the whistleblower’s report, a USDA veterinarian indicated to agency management that the slaughterhouse was “so behind” that JBS was keeping trucks on the road until workers were ready to unload the pigs. A federal veterinarian who reviewed the slaughterhouse’s records the next morning thought the number of animals JBS reported as dying in the heat seemed low and wrote that JBS workers “kept throwing different numbers at me … It made me concerned about the barn’s recordkeeping.” The veterinarian described having conversations about the matter “with management, including … corporate [personnel] and got nowhere.” Another supervisory federal veterinarian wrote, “Everyone in here knows how I feel about shipping hogs in that kind of weather … yet they continue year after year to do it.”
“Pigs already being trucked to their deaths were trapped inside sweltering trailers as the temperatures soared, with nowhere to escape or find relief,” says PETA Vice President Daniel Paden. “PETA is calling on JBS to stop leaving animals to suffer on trucks and urges everyone to spare pigs this misery by going vegan.”
The Marshalltown report isn’t the only recent whistleblower account PETA has received of animals left on trucks for hours bound for JBS: A separate whistleblower reported this summer that cows were collapsing in temperatures over 90 degrees as trucks waited six hours or more to unload at the company’s Grand Island, Nebraska, slaughterhouse. PETA called on local police to intervene.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that when it comes to the ability to feel pain, hunger, and fear, a pig is a dog is a boy. PETA’s free vegan starter kit can help anyone thinking of making the switch. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
PETA’s letter to Batista Filho follows.
October 22, 2026
To: Wesley Batista Filho, CEO, JBS Foods USA
From: Colin Henstock, Associate Director of Project Strategy, PETA
Via e-mail
Re: Animals suffering and dying during prolonged wait times at JBS slaughterhouses
Dear Mr. Filho:
Your attention is urgently requested. On July 27, PETA was contacted by a whistleblower who reported that many pigs were dying from heat exposure on trucks awaiting unloading at the JBS slaughter facility located at 402 N. 10th Ave. in Marshalltown, Iowa. PETA contacted district leadership of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), requesting immediate action.
We recently received FSIS records that confirm a prolonged wait that day, with one official indicating that the unloading was “so behind” in temperatures reaching 93 degrees. It appears that at least 128 pigs died during the first shift, and officials expected that more would die during the second shift, during the hottest part of the day. FSIS officials also expressed concerns about whether your staff had undercounted the number of pigs who had died, and one FSIS veterinarian lamented, “Everyone in here knows how I feel about shipping hogs in that kind of weather … yet they continue year after year to do it.”
PETA has received numerous complaints about animals suffering in extreme weather on idle trucks at JBS facilities, including a similar complaint about cows suffering on sweltering trucks at JBS Grand Island approximately two weeks before the Marshalltown incident. We have contacted JBS in good faith numerous times about the matter. Despite previous assurances that the company’s significant facility investments have reduced wait times, we continue to hear from concerned industry insiders, and these records confirm that federal officials share their concerns. We ask that you make a genuine and concerted effort to ensure that no more animals will be left to suffer and die in weather extremes on trucks idling outside and at JBS facilities.
Thank you in advance for your time. I look forward to hearing from you soon about this urgent matter.
Sincerely,
Colin Henstock
Associate Director of Project Strategy
