OSINT Toolkit

This toolkit focuses on Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT): the legal and ethical gathering of information from publicly available sources, used to uncover corporate connections, track livestock transport, and monitor the environmental impact of industrial farming.

Corporate Transparency & Financial Research

Under EU law, company registration and financial reporting are highly regulated. Use these tools to trace parent companies, ultimate owners, and industrial lobbying efforts.

OpenCorporates

The largest open database of companies, drawn from official registries in over 140 jurisdictions. Useful for tracing ownership of slaughterhouses and processors across borders. Since August 2023 the officer, beneficial owner, filings and source-registry fields require a free account, and journalists, NGOs and academics can apply for free at-scale API access.

BRIS (e-Justice Portal)

The Business Registers Interconnection System links the trade registers of all EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, searchable through the European e-Justice Portal. Basic company data is free; some fields such as officers and capital carry a fee set by the national register.

LobbyFacts.eu

Essential for EU-based journalists. Tracks the EU Transparency Register to show how much the meat and dairy industries spend lobbying the European Parliament.

EU TED

Search public contracts (Tenders Electronic Daily) to identify which companies supply meat/dairy to schools, hospitals, and government institutions.

North Data

Visualises corporate networks and financial histories, with the deepest coverage for Germany, Austria and Switzerland and lighter coverage elsewhere in Europe.

LittleSis

A free database of who-knows-who at the heights of business and government. Coverage is heavily US-focused, so treat it as a supplement to European registers rather than a substitute.

Environmental Monitoring & Geolocation

The EU's Copernicus programme provides free, regularly updated satellite data. Use these tools to monitor land use, farm expansion and pollution over time.

Copernicus EO Browser

Free Sentinel imagery, updated every few days, at roughly 10 metres per pixel. Enough to track slurry lagoons, land clearing and site expansion over time, though not to resolve fine detail. Run by Sentinel Hub using Copernicus data.

European Industrial Emissions Portal

Map-based emissions and transfer data for tens of thousands of industrial facilities across the EU and EEA. Replaced the E-PRTR website in 2021 and still carries the historical E-PRTR record. Filter by the intensive livestock rearing activity categories for air and water releases.

Mapillary

A crowdsourced alternative to Street View, often with better coverage of rural European farm roads and industrial estates.

Wikimapia

An open-source map that often labels industrial sites or farms not named on commercial maps.

Google Earth Pro

Access historical satellite imagery to track how a facility or piece of land has changed over decades.

SunCalc

Model the sun's position for any place and moment. Comparing it against shadows in footage narrows down the time of day and the likely date range, though sun angles repeat twice a year so it cannot pin a single date on its own.

Live Export & Supply Chain Tracking

Live animal export is a major issue at EU ports. These tools allow you to track the vessels and companies involved in the international animal trade.

MarineTraffic

The primary tool for tracking livestock carrier ships departing EU ports bound for international markets.

Equasis

Ship safety and ownership records, including registered and beneficial owners of livestock carriers and their port state control detention history. Free, but requires registration.

ImportYeti

Search US customs bills of lading to uncover supply chains for animal products, leather and livestock feed. Covers sea freight into the United States only, from 2015 onward, so it maps what US buyers import from European suppliers rather than trade within the EU.

FleetMon

Excellent coverage of European coastal traffic and ships involved in regional animal transport.

FlightRadar24

Live and historical flight tracking. It shows aircraft movements rather than what is on board, so it corroborates a known livestock or freight charter rather than identifying one.

Verification & Digital Research

Ensure that the evidence you present meets journalistic standards for authenticity.

InVID / WeVerify

The industry standard for verifying video. Break footage into keyframes and perform reverse image searches to check it isn't recycled or faked.

Forensically

Check whether an image has been digitally manipulated or if its metadata has been altered.

The Wayback Machine

Access deleted corporate blog posts, old animal welfare pledges, or removed staff lists from industry websites.

Archive.today

A simple tool to create a permanent snapshot of a webpage as it exists right now.

Hunter.io

Find professional email patterns for agricultural corporations to legally contact spokespeople for comment.

Bellingcat Toolkits

Advanced investigative guides used by journalists worldwide to verify information and conduct digital research.

EU Legal & Statistical Resources

Access the data and laws that govern the industry within the European Union.

EUR-Lex

The official gateway to EU Law. Access all directives on animal protection, transport, and slaughter.

Eurostat Agriculture Database

Deep-dive into official statistics on livestock populations and agricultural trade flows between Member States.

EFSA

Access scientific opinions that form the basis for EU animal welfare and food safety legislation.

Animal Law Legal Center

A comprehensive database of animal-related laws and legal cases globally.

Ethical Investigating & GDPR Compliance

When conducting digital research within the European Union, investigators must remain compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This toolkit focuses on corporate entities, public officials, and environmental data.

We strictly condemn the use of OSINT for doxxing, trespassing, or harassment. Always verify information through multiple independent sources before publishing.