First-Ever Investigation into Wool Farm With Ties to H&M Reveals Extreme Cruelty to Sheep

For Immediate Release:

04 May 2026

Contact:

Anushka Yadav; [email protected]

Varulika Dixit; [email protected]

Mumbai — Just-released footage from the first-ever PETA Asia investigation into a wool operation in South Africa reveals rampant cruelty to and abuse of sheep, including workers who kicked and stomped on frightened sheep, dragged them by their legs, and left them with gaping wounds after shearing. Certified by the NATIVA “sustainable” standard, the farm sells its wool through a broker that supplies H&M Group with “responsibly” sourced wool.

In the disturbing video, workers can be seen kicking sheep in the head and body, hitting them in the face with shearing equipment, beating them with a piece of wood, and picking up and dragging lambs by their front legs. One worker dropped his knee onto a ram’s neck, hitting the animal’s head on the floor. Others sheared the sheep quickly and carelessly, slicing their skin and leaving them bloody in the process. The investigator documented a dead lamb on the farm and a lamb with a maggot-infested wound, which the farmer reported was due to a jackal bite. The farm is also certified by the misleadingly named Responsible Wool Standard.

An image from PETA’s footage of a NATIVA-certified wool operation in South Africa. Photo: PETA

“Once again, undercover footage shows sheep beaten, kicked, and sliced to pieces, before a humane-washing label is slapped on their wool,” says PETA India Director of Corporate Affairs, Ashima Kukreja. “PETA India and its entities are calling on H&M Group to get cruelly obtained wool out of its products and urges shoppers to choose vegan fabrics, as it’s the only way to ensure that animals aren’t tormented for clothing.”

Sheep are highly social animals who form strong bonds with each other. They grow depressed if isolated from their flock and communicate their emotions through facial expressions, just like humans. PETA entities have now released 17 exposés of over 150 wool industry operations in seven countries on four continents—revealing that even on self-proclaimed “ethical” and “responsible” farms, extreme cruelty and violence are rampant.

PETA India – whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to wear” – opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETAIndia.com or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

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