We don’t review many films here at Surge, but on watching Cow - which had the potential to be one of the most important portraits of a farmed animal ever to be made - we’re left with the feeling that justice wasn’t done to its star, Luma the mother cow. Spoiler alerts are not necessary, writes Andrew Gough.

Spain has made great strides in recognising the rights of animals, firstly by changing the legal status of cats and dogs from objects to sentient, living beings, and now, a proposed ‘animal rights’ bill that will outlaw zoos and pet shops and bring in tougher prison sentences for animal abusers. Despite all this, bullfighting, inexplicably, remains unchecked.

On Monday night the BBC aired an episode of its investigative documentary show Panorama entitled ‘A Cow’s Life: The True Cost of Milk?’ The reaction from viewers has been huge and heartening, while that of the dairy industry has been furious but rather more predictable.

BLOG: Obviously, but we all know “Sir” Mark won’t despite video evidence of him whipping an uncooperative horse. With Kurt Zouma’s cat abuse still fresh in our memories, this begs the question, should sports personalities lose more over their treatment of animals?

On the surface, the goals of Elon Musk’s Neuralink - to treat neurological disorders and restore senses and movement in humans - seem noble. But macaque monkeys have suffered untold miseries, and it’s clear that neither Musk nor Neuralink are telling the whole story. Claire Hamlett reports.

NEWS: Level 10 vegans rejoice! Now your physical acts of self-romance or partnered playtimes can be certified, and most definitely bonified, vegan-friendly. The Vegan Society has breathed an emphatic sigh of approval to sex toy maker Vibio.

Public outcries against high-profile cases of animal abuse are completely justified but always underpinned by hypocrisy. Yet would there be any real consequences at all if the public was apathetic towards all animals, not just the ones who are farmed? Claire Hamlett writes.

Was it all just another marketing ploy? With its once-iconic pro-vegan slogans and graphics, the former darling of plant-based milk lovers everywhere inexplicably decided to turn on those who helped raise it up. Claire Hamlett wonders where it all went wrong.

THE STORY IN PICTURES: The world’s second-biggest fishing vessel, Dutch-owned trawler FV Margiris, dumped more than 100,000 dead fish into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of France on Thursday. Yet it is quite literally a drop in the ocean when compared to the scale of death, suffering and devastation inflicted by the world’s fishing industries. Marine conservation activists from Sea Shepherd were there to capture the shocking images.

Bringing you a digest of news and opinion pieces you might have missed from the past week, covering all things animal agriculture, animal protection and environmental justice.

INVESTIGATION: Jumping up and down on a dead cow, repeatedly running over another, and bins of rotting carcasses left open to wildlife and the elements - all these are just some of the shocking scenes revealed by covert investigators.

OPINION: Queer Eye star Jonathan Van Ness got to grips with insects and arachnids on their new Netflix spin-off show. What Van Ness failed to get a hold of so well, however, were the many inconsistencies in their message. Should we love insects or eat them, asks Claire Hamlett.