Peta’s anger fell on Jeremy Clarkson when he said that a ‘clean, green’ earth would be joyless.
The Clarkson’s Farm star, 63, recently raised eyebrows with an essay in which he said that in order to create a green world, humans could have to ‘live on pills manufactured by AI robots in solar-powered factories’ instead of food.
‘Compared, say, with carving a lovely piece of beef and opening the oven door to find your Yorkshire puddings are perfect for once. Who wants to live in a world without gravy?’
Peta, an animal protection charity, has responded to Jeremy’s words by sending him a distressing picture book.
At first sight, The Secret Lives of Animals appears to be a children’s book, complete with nursery songs and vibrant cartoon characters.
Closer inspection reveals sheared rabbits, lab mice blinded by product testing, and a despondent dolphin locked in a tank.
One rhyme showing a cartoon bunny has the lyrics: ‘At around this time tomorrow/ You’ll be skinned, then killed/ By humans who’ll feel no sorrow/ For the blood you’ve spilled.’
Another has a spin on Three Blind Mice, writing ‘this is their vile sacrifice/ The pain, stress and all the rest/ That goes with a product test.’
Peta’s Vice President of Programmes Elisa Allen sent the book to Jeremy along with a letter, sharing the ‘shocking truths and inescapable logic.’
She quips that the book is’simple’ enough that ‘even someone who… mourns the death of their family dog but deems vegans “lunatics” for worrying about the wholesale killing of billions of chickens, pigs, and cows may comprehend the message.’
Jeremy earlier stated in a press conference for Clarkson’s Farm that there are ‘lunatics in every culture’ when asked whether he was concerned about vegan criticism for putting his farm animals to slaughter.
Peta hopes that the book will also ‘inspire’ Jeremy to ‘offer vegan alternatives in the Diddly Squat Farm shop.’
In a statement, Elisa said that it may take a ‘Christmas miracle’ for Jeremy to ‘admit he was wrong,’ but that’maybe this surprising stocking stuffer might help give him the push he needs towards animal- and eco-friendly foods iin 2024.’
It comes after Jeremy’s latest column where he called veganism a ‘noble quest’ but ‘what they will lose if they are ever successful in their endeavours is the one thing that makes life worth living. Joy.’
‘‘I watch people now, chewing on grass, like cows, and pausing occasionally to sip from their lumpy green juice, and they always look so desperately pale and unhappy compared with the slightly tipsy person queueing for some late-night fish and chips,’ he added.
Peta has previously launched shock campaigns demanding Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly to leave I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! in opposition to the use of live animals in Bushtucker trials.
Ingrid Newkirk, founder of Peta, stated this year that she would send I’m A Celebrity a chunk of her own decaying flesh in protest of their animal-eating trials.
‘I’m A Celebrity is bottom of the barrel TV so I’m sending them my bottom when I die. It’s what they deserve,’ Ingrid said.
‘A lot of people are now running away from animal-derived foods, but their producers are so out of touch, that they’re still including wild animals’ bits and pieces on the menu.
‘The producers remind me of snickering schoolboys. Using animals in trials is mean, and disgusting. There is no need for animals to needlessly die, or suffer. They should be ashamed.’