Brazil police announce new phase in 'Weak Flesh' food fraud investigation

[March 05, 2018] By Pedro Fonseca and Ana Mano

SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian federal police on Monday announced a new phase in an investigation dubbed “Weak Flesh” targeting a business group accused of acting fraudulently to evade food security checks.

The police said they would serve 11 temporary arrest warrants and 53 search and seizure warrants.

Brazilian food processor BRF SA is the main target in this phase of the probe, a source with knowledge of the matter said on condition of anonymity.

BRF did not have an immediate comment on the matter.

"The fraud had the intention to cheat inspection services so as to prevent the agriculture ministry from controlling the quality of the industrial process of the company under investigation," the police said.

The arrest and search warrants were carried out in the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, Goiás and São Paulo, police said.

The "Weak Flesh" probe was announced in March 2017, wreaking havoc on the sector and temporarily closing export markets to Brazil, the world's largest beef and chicken exporter.

BRF reported a $369 million loss last year in its worst results ever.

Over the weekend, pension funds which are BRF's largest shareholders, presented a list of 10 candidates for seats on the board in a bid to overhaul the business.

(Reporting by Pedro Fonseca and Ana Mano; editing by Gareth Jones and Jason Neely)

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