Jamaica Broilers Group Limited (JBG) announced plans to sell its chicken processing plant in South Carolina, marking the first asset sale since its US corporate scandal.
The Jamaica-based group said in a market filing that it had “entered into an agreement to divest the assets of The Best Dressed Chicken Processing Plant in South Carolina”, held through its wholly owned subsidiary. No sale price or buyer was named. The company said the decision followed a review of its US operations, citing “sustained operational challenges” and market conditions that had “impacted performance in the broiler meat segment”.
JBG paid roughly J$1.5 billion to acquire the South Carolina facility from Gentry’s Poultry Company, Inc in September 2019, marking its entry into processed chicken sales in the United States. Early returns were thin – in its first year under Broilers’ ownership, the plant generated revenues of $2 billion and profits of $25 million, a margin of roughly one per cent.
The US operations had been among the group’s strongest contributors until a “forensic audit” that exposed “inflated” inventories and off-balance-sheet financing, according to its 2025 annual report. The fallout left the group with negative equity of $10 billion at its 2025 financial year end, worsening from negative equity of $1 billion in 2024, all flowing from irregularities in the US operations.
Stephen Levy, brother of group President and CEO Christopher Levy, who headed the US operations, resigned from both the board and the company in May 2025.
JBG subsequently replaced leadership across all US entities, brought in a new accounting team, and changed auditors. The company is also finalising a debt restructuring deal to stabilise liquidity and restore investor confidence.
Jamaica Broilers’ local operations – the Best Dressed Chicken brand and Hi-Pro animal feed — along with its US fertile egg business remained profitable throughout the crisis.
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