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JBS USA announced it has suffered an organized cyberattack that has affected servers supporting its IT systems in North America and Australia.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is proposing to list the lesser prairie chicken under the Endangered Species Act. The chicken’s habitat spans parts of five states, including Colorado, Kansas and Texas.

Australian and North American units of the world’s largest meat works were hit over the weekend by an organized cyber attack on its information systems, Brazil’s JBS SA said in a statement.

The dire drought situation is one USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey thinks could last through at least the remainder of 2021. Forecasts also point to a drier weather pattern returning for Texas and the Plains.

Demand for pork and grains is helping propel prices in 2021, and USDA is forecasting it to be a record year.

After JBS confirmed a cyberattack shuttered some of its processing plants, USDA’s daily cattle slaughter estimates revealed 94,000 head of cattle were processed on Tuesday, a drop of 27,000 head compared to last week.

JBS USA says it has invested $130 million to increase production capacities at two of its major beef processing facilities in Grand Island and Omaha, Neb., and announced annualized wage increases over the past year.

Gregory Bloom, CEO and owner of U.S. Protein, shares his perspectives on the cattle market based on experience as a cattle buyer, meat seller and working with chefs and restaurants.

JBS USA said it paid an $11 million ransom to cyber attackers that shut down operations in the U.S. and Australia last week. All plants were fully operational by June 3.

One consequence of the back-to-back-to-back black swans is a surge in the popularity – or at least sampling – of fake meats. Rising prices for real beef has aided demand for alternatives at retail and foodservice.