New Recycling Carts Prompt PETA Proposal: ‘Go Vegan!’ Ads

For Immediate Release:
April 19, 2021

Contact:
Tapi Mbundure 202-483-7382

Because Baltimore is planning to distribute about 200,000 free recycling carts to residents, PETA sent a letter today—just ahead of Earth Day—to Mayor Brandon M. Scott offering to contribute by paying to plaster the carts with its “Meat and Dairy Trash the Planet. Go Vegan” ads.

“Going vegan saves animals, slashes carbon emissions, and cleans up the planet,” says PETA President Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is eager to help Charm City reduce its meat intake by reusing these recycling carts as ‘go green, go vegan’ ads.”

PETA is making a similar offer to the mayor of Mattawa, Washington: To help offset the cost of the city’s recently approved increase in the residential garbage rate, PETA will pay to place its “Go Vegan” ads on city garbage trucks.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—opposes speciesism, a human-supremacist worldview. For more information, please visit PETA.org.

PETA’s letter to Scott follows.

April 19, 2021

The Honorable Brandon M. Scott

Mayor of Baltimore

Dear Mayor Scott:

First, congratulations on your healthy—and almost vegan—diet! I’m writing on behalf of PETA and our more than 6.5 million members and supporters worldwide, including thousands across Maryland, regarding Baltimore’s plan to distribute about 200,000 recycling carts, free of charge, to eligible city households. Since Earth Day is rapidly approaching, we’d like to help a little by paying to place PETA ads on some of those carts. Our ads feature this pro-health, Earth-friendly message: “Meat and Dairy Trash the Planet. Go Vegan.”

Interest in “going green” is skyrocketing with many people who are trying to reduce their carbon footprint. However, many others are still unaware of the meat and dairy industries’ devastating impact on the environment. The United Nations states that a global shift toward a vegan diet is vital if we are to combat the worst effects of climate change and that animal agriculture is “one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.”

Of course, in addition to trashing the planet, sucking up water resources, and so on, the meat and dairy industries cause untold animal suffering and contribute in various ways to human ill health. According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, vegans reduce their risk of developing diabetes by 62%, their chance of being hospitalized for a heart attack by 33%, their risk of suffering from heart disease by 29%, and their risk of developing cancer by 18%. A vegan diet is also linked to a decrease in the risk of suffering from obesity, since vegans are about 18% thinner and 10 to 20 pounds lighter, on average, than their meat- and dairy-eating counterparts.

I’m sure you already know that consuming meat, eggs, and dairy has long been known to be unhealthy, unnecessary, and a major contributor to climate change. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which is believed to have originated in a live-animal market, is just one more reason why our society needs to switch away from animal-based foods. Placing our ads on city recycling bins would help protect animals, the environment, and human health. Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.

Very truly yours,

Ingrid Newkirk

President