The smell was the first thing that struck 'We Animals' photo journalist Resha Juhari: exposing the animals within our food systems

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INSIDE BALI'S UNREGULATED PIG SLAUGHTER

The face of a pig who stares out of a tiny metal cage, called a “blangsung”, at a slaughterhouse. Undisclosed location, Badung Regency, Bali, Indonesia, 2025. Resha Juhari / We Animals “It was horrible to see pigs being killed in such a way. They were beaten over the head with clubs, then their throats were slit. This was the first time I had seen it in person.” — Muhammad Fajri, photojournalist

The smell was the first thing that struck We Animals photojournalist Resha Juhari when he stepped into a roadside slaughterhouse in Bali, Indonesia. Even through a mask, the stench of urine and decay was overwhelming. A pig looked out from inside a metal cage, next to piles of intestines, blood, and butchered meat. The scene was not an isolated case. We were able to obtain unprecedented access to these facilities and took the opportunity to document what was inside. Across Bali’s Badung regency, photojournalists Resha Juhari and Muhammad Fajri visited eight small slaughterhouses. They documented conditions and practices inside facilities that appear to operate with little oversight, raising concerns about animal welfare, worker safety, and public health. For most consumers, slaughter remains out of sight. But as global concern grows around animal welfare, food safety, and environmental protection, the conditions documented in these facilities raise a difficult question: how much oversight exists behind the pork that reaches the table? We have shared these visuals with local NGOs advocating for change, and hope that our investigation will encourage authorities in Indonesia to consider implementing legal protections for animals. [Content warning: Contains confronting images and/or video footage]

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PHOTO OF THE MONTH

A jockey and a pair of yoked buffaloes begin a Kambala buffalo race. The jockey hits the animals with a bamboo cane to increase their speed and steers them with a plough handle. Loud vocalizations are made by the people present to urge the buffalo on. Mulki Kambala Track, Mulki, Karnataka, India, 2025. Manju N Gowda / FIAPO / We Animals

Good photographs transport us. This image, by Indian photojournalist Manju N Gowda, was captured at a 2025 Kambala buffalo race. A jockey and a yoked pair surge forward through water and mud. He strikes them with a bamboo cane to increase their speed, steering with a plough handle. Around them, spectators are yelling, cheering. We’re often told not to anthropomorphize. But here, it is difficult not to. In this frame, we are inside the chaos. We feel the water splash. We brace for the strike of the cane. There is no option but to run. Context Kambala is a traditional buffalo race rooted in the culture of the Tulu people in coastal Karnataka, India. Once held in paddy fields as village entertainment, it is now staged at large, sponsored events, often organized by local politicians and Kambala committees. This photo is part of a larger assignment done in partnership with FIAPO (Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organisations) to challenge the narrative that Kambala is a harmless cultural tradition and advocate for new state-level legislation.

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TRANSFORMING THE WAY WE SEE AND TREAT AQUATIC LIFE

Celebrate World Aquatic Animal Day with us on April 3—join in person or online. At George Washington University, our founder, Jo-Anne McArthur, will deliver the keynote address at this year’s World Aquatic Animal Day. The theme: The Human Gaze: Impacts on Aquatic Animals. Alongside leading advocates Amy P. Wilson, Lori Marino, Randall Abate, and Kathy Hessler, the panel will explore how the fields of law, science, and photojournalism “see” aquatic animals, and what that means for their lives.

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A rescued red fox looks into the camera while The Fox Project (TFP) staff discuss her care. We Animals founder Jo-Anne McArthur visited TFP in Kent, UK in late 2025 to document their work. Jo-Anne McArthur / The Fox Project / We Animals

Behind the Label: An Investigation into Italy’s Buffalo Mozzarella Industry where buffaloes are subjected to harsh conditions, restrictive confinement and cruelty

Exposing the animals within Our Food Systems

Buffalo cow looks out from a pen at an intensive buffalo dairy farm. 

Her muzzle is tightly fitted with a spiked anti-suckling device to restrict her from suckling 

from other buffalo cows

our investigation uncovered evidence of the following:

 Unlike female calves, his ear remains untagged as he will be killed within days, likely without being registered. Pierri Buffalo Dairy Farm, 

• Animal suffering: Buffaloes are subjected to harsh conditions, including restrictive confinement and poorly regulated farming practices. The animals are treated as production machines and display unnatural behaviours, far from the idyllic pasture-based lives suggested by advertising.

Excrement coats the legs of water buffalo cows standing on a floor thickly covered with waste at an intensive buffalo dairy farm. Cooperativa Ponte Sant’Antonio, San Tammaro, Caserta, Italy, 2024. 

  Photo: Raffaele Petralla / We Animals

• Environmental damage: Nitrate pollution from buffalo waste has severely impacted local water systems in Campania, affecting biodiversity and local communities’ health. Several farms also resort to illegal practices, including improper sewage disposal in waterways, exacerbating the region’s environmental decline.
• Misleading marketing: Brands like Garofalo and La Marchesa continue to use the “Made in Italy” narrative, invoking images of pristine landscapes and happy buffaloes while ignoring the grim realities behind their production. The advertising often masks these issues and paints an unrealistic picture of animal welfare and sustainability.
• Economic challenges: Amidst global demand, farmers struggle with falling milk prices—mainly due to corporate pressure and the rise of large-scale industrial production—placing local communities under financial strain and impacting the quality of the mozzarella they produce.

 Raffaele Petralla / We Animals

Videographer: Arianna Fraccon    Written by: We Animals

www.weanimals.org