15 November 2023 , 15:52
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Vegan Heather Mills has furiously hit out at Sainsbury's over a "cruel" and "unkind" Christmas card that's been slammed by animal lovers.
The Christmas card went viral on social media after it was spotted by one horrified customer and subsequently brought to the attention of animal activist Heather. The supermarket features a picture of two snow-covered pigs, with the message: "Don't worry, I hear we're getting some blankets!"
Angry animal lovers took to X, formally known as Twitter, to share their outrage at the design. Speaking to The Mirror, Heather said: "It’s also lying, for any young kids that don't understand what they mean or what pigs in blankets are, they're going to look at it and think, ‘Oh, that pig gets a nice blanket from Sainsbury's’ – it's gross.
"It’s one thing if they're going to eat pork, but it's another thing to make a joke about it. It's just unnecessary and it's what's feeding people that joke about those that don’t eat meat. We used to be the real weirdos, we’re less weird now. It's more accepted. I've been vegan for 30 years and you can imagine 30 years ago, I was the biggest weirdo on the planet. But now people are having to accept the consequences of the overconsumption and production and manufacturing of meat."
Sainsbury's have been hit with a huge backlash (heathermillsofficial/Instagram)The founder of plant-based food company VBites continued: "There needs to be more awareness. You can't say you're an environmentalist and still eat meat. People are saying they care about the planet, I care about what my kids are gonna grow up in, but they obviously don't because they're still going around eating loads of meat.
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"There are solutions, there are alternatives out there. You can become a flexitarian before moving over to vegetarian before moving over to vegan. If people want pigs in blankets, why not have the meat-free alternative?" Heather, whose company VBites helped to create vegan alternatives for McDonald's, Burger King and Domino's, branded Sainsbury's "ignorant" over the controversial Christmas card.
Heather shared the Christmas card on Instagram, with fans admitting they were left in tears and heartbroken over the design. She wrote: "This card from @sainsburys highlights a major historical and endemic societal issue with the way we treat these and other highly intelligent creatures. Having spent time uncovering the nefarious practices of pig farming, sadly I’ve seen it first-hand. If people can’t stifle their Christmas cravings, we’ve got plenty of vegan bacon and sausage at @VBitesfoods - that’s why we made them!"
Heather blasted the card and called on shoppers to purchase meat-free alternatives (Newcastle Chronicle)One saddened fan replied: "I'm chocked, is that an actual card? I want to cry!! That breaks my heart. Why is it soo hard for people to go alternative," while another added: "Why, just why @sainsburys ? Do you think this is funny or something? DO BETTER."
The supermarket acknowledged the original tweet and replied to the shopper apologising about the tone of the card and said they have passed the complaint onto the relevant department for an internal review. A Sainsbury's spokesperson said: "We offer a wide range of festive cards and welcome customer feedback on this year's designs."
Heather Mills founded VBites - the pioneer of plant-based food since 1993 - which specialises in producing delicious foods totally free from animal ingredients. More information can be found here.