The leather industry traditionally employs lime and sodium sulfide for unhairing, generating highly alkaline wastewater and significant environmental pollution. This study evaluates the potential of bromelain extracted from different parts of pineapple (Ananas comosus) crown, fruit, peel, and leaves as an eco-friendly alternative for enzymatic unhairing of cowhide, and compares its performance with the conventional chemical method. Cowhide samples were treated with crude bromelain extracts under controlled conditions, and their performance was assessed based on weight loss, hair removal efficiency, chemical oxygen demand (COD), total dissolved solids (TDS), and pH changes in the treatment liquor. The conventional process showed a weight loss of 10.83% and COD of 7285 mg/L, with complete and easy hair removal. Among enzymatic treatments, leaf extract without purification demonstrated the highest weight loss (22.98%) and effective hair removal; however, excessive weight loss may indicate partial collagen degradation. Purified extracts generally exhibited lower enzymatic activity and reduced unhairing efficiency. Enzymatic treatments operated under mildly acidic conditions (pH 4.08–5.60) compared to the highly alkaline conventional process (pH 12.58), indicating improved environmental compatibility. The results suggest that crude bromelain, particularly from pineapple leaves; can serve as an effective and sustainable alternative to sulfide-based unhairing in leather processing.