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A New Beef Baron Leads Brazil's Charge for World Domination

  • Marfrig surprised investors with National Beef acquisition
  • Chairman steps into spotlight as rival struggles with scandal
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A new Brazil beef baron has stepped into the global spotlight -- and he’s not quite like the guys who got all the attention before him.

Marcos Molina dos Santos, the founder and chairman of Marfrig Global Foods SA, is modest, media-shy and talks the language of butchers rather than bankers. All the same, he’s getting lots of attention as Marfrig breaks out to become the world’s second-largest beef producer with its first acquisition overseas in seven years. Brazilian companies are now in charge of about a third of the U.S. beef-packing industry.