The butcher said: “We are surrounded with people telling us to go vegan and vegetarian, yet my business is a Butchers. We sell meat and I’m promoting my business.”

Edinburgh vegans have slammed a family butchers for an ‘ignorant’ sign it put up to call on locals to eat more meat.

The ‘nonsense’ chalkboard sign outside W.M Christie Butchers in Bruntsfield reads: “Every day thousands of innocent plants are killed by vegetarians. Help end the violence and eat meat.”

W.M Christie is now run by Willie Christie. It is a fifth-generation family butcher which was established in 1889.

The tongue in cheek comment mocks the longstanding common argument used by vegetarians and vegans that thousands of innocent animals are killed every year by meat eaters.

Backlash

The image was shared on Facebook by local Jakub Dragon who captured it. As expected, it provoked many vegans, who flocked to the post to express their outrage. One agitated plant-eater even branded the owners “psychopaths”.

22-year-old Dragon told Edinburgh Live: “I just think it’s nonsense, I don’t understand, how can they justify killing an animal like that.

“It only brings anger, and fights and I don’t find that funny. Surely eating plants is less damaging to the environment, and plants, unlike animals are not sentient.”

A Facebook user wrote: “Jeez, the ignorance is astonishing. Plants are not sentient and exist in synergy with humans and animals as a food source.

Another added: “You just can’t say I murdered a carrot. People will cling to all sorts of nonsense to justify murdering animals….animals that have exactly the same fundamental wishes as us – to be happy, safe and free from suffering.”

“And what does their meat eat?” a third commented.

Response

Despite the obvious gibe, Christie told Edinburgh Live that the sign was “a simple joke” and not meant to be malicious.

Moreover, it was put up in response to Veganuary –  the 31 day pledge to go vegan in January.

The Veganuary challenge, which has grown tremendously over the years is often poked fun at by pro-meat companies, which are seemingly threatened by its soaring success.

“As it it’s Veganuary, isn’t it fitting it could be meatanury too?” the butcher said.

“People have taken it wrongly. we are surrounded with people telling us to go vegan and vegetarian, yet my business is a Butchers. We sell meat and I’m promoting my business.

“Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I respect that, I’m just expressing mine. And it seems to have worked, given the attention my Butchers has now received.”

• Read: Shoppers ditch red meat after climate receipts added to weekly orders

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