Slaughterhouse owner Werner Haas has a ton of slaughter waste dumped on his front lawn in the middle of the night. Fuming mad, he files charges against unknown persons and foolishly sets something in motion that can’t be stopped.

At 6am on May 21, 2008, armed police burst into the apartment of Austrian dog trainer and animal-rights activist Sabine Koch, arresting her. After three months in custody, Koch, together with 12 other animal-rights activists, went on trial. They were charged with being members of a criminal organisation and therefore breaching article 273a of the Austrian Penal Code, introduced in the wake of 9/11. The article’s intention is to allow the state to stifle terrorist activity. Years of observation, house searches, and undercover agents – the police left no stone unturned in its bid to prove the animal-rights activists’ guilt. The sobering result: five million Euros worth of investigation, no proof and a great deal of scepticism towards the Austrian justice system – and democracy itself.

Through discussions with actors and thinkers of animal ethics, Homo Herbivorus explores our relationship to the consumption of products derived from animal exploitation.