The story did not end with the first images. È Animali returns to disseminate new videos, collected in May 2026, which document the current situation of a large intensive sow and piglet farm in the province of Treviso, already known for being included in the circuit of protected designation of origin productions.
The first video, narrated by Selvaggia Lucarelli and reached by millions of outraged people, had already shown gratuitous violence against animals, mutilations without anesthesia and dilapidated structures. The images now released confirm that those were not exceptions: they are the norm.
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The new images: what the footage from May 2026 shows
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The new videos certify an alarming situation and in some ways even more serious than what has already been documented. The farm is literally invaded by mice, present in all areas of the structure, even in the troughs and in a trolley intended for storing feed, with excrement mixed with the food given to the pigs.
In the farrowing cages there are dozens and dozens of dead piglets – some born already lifeless, others who died while breastfeeding, still others filmed in agony.
@EssereAnimali
In several rooms there are shelves and refrigerators filled with antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and anti-parasitics used to treat bacterial infections, respiratory problems and parasitic infestations. Several sows appear in a clear state of debilitation; one in particular has a serious prolapse, a condition already documented in the first video. Finally, outside, a wheelbarrow contains the carcasses of several piglets exposed to atmospheric agents and accessible to wild animals, with obvious biosecurity risks.
@EssereAnimali
The images released today confirm many of the structural problems already documented by the former company employee and shown in the first video in collaboration with Selvaggia Lucarelli.
@EssereAnimali
What the first video showed
In the video released last week, gratuitous violence on the part of the farmer and other workers emerged: animals hit and kicked, sows grabbed by the ears and dragged along the corridors, piglets thrown into metal trolleys from up to three meters away, piled up and crushed by the weight of others.
An operator improvised as a veterinarian trying to retract a sow’s prolapse with his bare hands. The farrowing crates had sharp and corroded parts in direct contact with the mother and puppies. Piglets born a few days old were subjected to surgical castration and tail docking without anesthesia or analgesia – practices prohibited by European legislation for over twenty-five years when practiced routinely.
DOP does not mean animal welfare
This is perhaps the most important point of the whole story. The DOP brand certifies the geographical origin and compliance with specific production regulations, but does not guarantee high standards of animal welfare. If the regulations do not expressly prohibit certain practices, even products with a protected denomination can come from farms that use cages and other systems typical of intensive farming.
Italy raised in a cage: the numbers
There are around 600,000 sows raised in cages in Italy, together with 17 million laying hens, 13 million rabbits, 1.5 million calves and 8 million quails confined in small spaces for part or all of their lives.
The images we released last week reached millions of outraged people. With these new videos we want to return to denouncing not only irregularities and mistreatment, but also a cruelty that is still legal in Italy: cage farming. With our bill, which has already exceeded 40,000 signatures, we want to ask Parliament to take on board the requests of thousands of Italian citizens. Italy can and must do more to stop the suffering of animals still bred in cages in our country, as more than 9 out of 10 Italians ask for, as emerged in the latest Eurobarometer. — Chiara Caprio, institutional relations manager ofessereanimali
The “Empty Cages” campaign and the European framework
The investigation is part of a broader mobilization. In March 2026,essereanimali filed a popular initiative law proposal as part of the Empty Cages campaign, which aims to gradually introduce the ban on all farmed species. The petition has already exceeded 40,000 signatures.
At European level, the citizens’ initiative End the Cage Age had collected over 1.4 million signatures, obtaining a commitment from the European Commission in 2021 to progressively overcome cage farming – a commitment which, the associations denounce, has not yet been translated into a concrete legislative proposal.
Meanwhile, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands have already introduced or planned significant restrictions. According to the latest Eurobarometer, over 9 out of 10 Italians say they are in favor of banning cages on farms.
Sign the petition
Support the popular initiative bill to bring to Parliament the request for an Italy without cages on farms:essereanimali.org/gabbie-vuote
