Brothers Behind Brazil’s $18 Billion Meat Empire Are Getting Into Mining

Brazil’s Batista brothers built the world’s largest meat supplier through ruthless deal making, often buying unwanted assets and turning them around. Flush with cash, now they’re getting into the mining business.

J&F Investimentos SA, owned by the Batista family, emerged as the surprise buyer of some of Vale SA’s operations in Brazil, according to a regulatory filing Wednesday. The assets include manganese and iron-ore mines, as well as logistics operations, worth a total of $1.2 billion including debt.