TITLE: MEAT

The closely guarded and secret slaughterhouse for pigs is located in the middle of a residential neighbourhood on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. Because of the lack of modern equipment, the animals here are still traditionally killed in a gruesome manner, as are animals in most slaughterhouses in Cambodia. Although international organisations in recent years have repeatedly called for a reform of Cambodia’s virtually non-existent animal welfare laws, slaughtering conditions have remained unchanged. The abattoir workers bludgeon the pigs with heavy metal rods. They then slit the animals’ throats and leave them to bleed to death, sometimes while still conscious. The dying pigs are dragged across the blood-soaked concrete floor before being thrown into a vat of boiling water. Throughout this brutal procedure, live and dead animals remain in the same room; the noises and smells are unimaginable and subject the pigs to maximum levels of stress.
This method is not without physical and psychological effects on the workers, who are employed on a piecework basis from eleven in the evening until five in the morning. Tellingly, their wages are based on the cruelty of the particular activity they are carrying out. Workers who slit the pigs’ throats receive the highest rate. Livestock production is being driven by a rapidly increasing demand for meat in Cambodia and attractive prospects of profit for employers.
The photo story is part of the series VANISHING CAMBODIA, which photographer Steff Gruber has been working on for a number of years and which examines the social changes taking place in the country.

AUTHOR: Steff Gruber (Switzerland)

Steff Gruber (1953) is a Swiss photographer and filmmaker. He worked as a press photographer for Keystone Press and was one of the first filmmakers to deal with the docudrama genre. He became internationally known with his documentary LOCATION AFRICA, about the shooting of Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski for the film COBRA VERDE. His award-winning films were shown at various international film festivals.
Based on his interest in documentaries, Gruber began shooting photo stories in various countries that focused, in particular, on human interest subjects and humanist concerns. He produced many of his photo series over a period of several years, visiting places and people on repeated occasions.
In April 2020 Steff Gruber opened the Lumiere.Gallery with the aim of offering photographers a platform through digital photo exhibitions.
Steff Gruber is a member of the Swiss Association of Journalists and Photographers IMPRESSUM.