Netizens witnessed a war of words between India’s largest dairy brand Amul and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India over the latter’s advice to switch to producing Vegan milk.
RS Sodhi, managing director of Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) which makes Amul milk, butter, ice-cream and cheese slammed PETA, for advising it to switch to producing vegan milk saying the animal rights organisation wanted it to snatch livelihood of 100 million poor dairy farmers, of which 70 per cent are landless. Earlier, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) had dismissed a plea filed by PETA against Amul for stating that plant-based products can’t be called ‘milk’.
Within a few hours, countless netizens have joined the debate, with some extolling the virtues of vegan milk even as others lashed out at PETA India over its various campaigns.
Vegan milk, a new rising trend in millennials, is an umbrella term referring to various kinds of non-dairy, plant-based ‘milks’ such as soy, coconut and almond. Non-dairy milk is the latest toast in the world of nutrition. From Virat Kohli to Amir Khan; Hollywood actress Netalie Portman to Jessica Chastain and Jacqualin Fernandez to Alia Bhatt, all have switched to Vegan milk products. Kohli recently revealed the reason behind him turning vegan. He left eating meat before the England Test series in 2018, when he got a ‘cervical spine issue’. Kohli follows a plant-based diet and draws his protein from it. Actress Sonam Kapoor who is associated with PETA turned vegan.
Sodhi, while replying to a tweet by Ashwini Mahajan, national co-convener of Swadeshi Jagran Manch said, “Don’t you know dairy farmers are mostly landless. Your designs may kill their only source of livelihood. Mind it milk is in our faith, our traditions, our taste, our food habits an easy and always available source of nutrition.”
Sodhi took further to Twitter to ask Peta if switching over to vegan milk will provide 100 million dairy farmers, 70% of whom are landless, with a livelihood, and pay their children’s school fees, and how many people in India can actually afford lab manufactured milk. “Will they give livelihood to 100 million dairy farmers (70% landless)? Who will pay for their children’s school fees? How many can afford expensive lab manufactured factory food made out of chemicals and synthetic vitamins?” Sodhi tweeted.
Owing to the growing scope of veganism in India, PETA urged the largest dairy producer of the country Amul to start producing vegan milk, instead of cattle milk. It took to Twitter and wrote, “We would again like to encourage Amul to benefit from the booming vegan food and milk market, instead of wasting resources trying to fight the demand for plant-based products that are only growing. Other companies are responding to market changes, and Amul can too.”
PETA in its letter to Sodhi cited a 2018 report by global food corporation Cargill which claims that demand for dairy products around the world is on the decline as dairy is no longer considered an essential part of a diet.
