In a bizarre political stunt PETA has sent Prime Minister Scott Morrison a tiny soybean seed, with the message: “Help the nation’s beleaguered dairy farmers become world-leading agents of change by phasing out mammary secretions in favour of tasty, innovative vegan milks”.
PETA campaigns adviser Mimi Bekhechi’s letter to Mr Morrison states: “A good leader chooses compassion and innovates to futureproof the lives of others”.
“By making the transition to cultivating plant crops rather than exploiting cows, farmers have an opportunity to produce a kinder, healthier, more Earth-friendly milk and to enter a surging non-dairy milk industry worth an estimated $150 million.”
Ms Bekhechi said plants lacked a central nervous system and were not sentient, so “unlike cows, don’t experience physical pain or emotional distress when used in milk production”.
PETA’s motto reads: “Animals are not ours to eat”.
Dairy Connect chairman Graham Forbes said converting to soybeans would just send dairy farmers broke.
“(US President Donald) Trump has just squashed the price of soybeans with his dealings on China,” Mr Forbes said.
“I’ve got no problem with vegans eating their beans, but don’t try and stop us milking cows. It’s almost like a religion to them, that they want to force down our throats.”