“I sincerely hope that for the future of the planet and animal welfare you are able to implement this policy.”

British rock legend Paul McCartney is urging Starbucks to ditch its vegan milk surcharge.

The world’s largest coffee chain currently offers five plant milks: oat, soya, almond, coconut, and its exclusive Starbucks Original Nut Blend.

While Starbucks UK pledged to stop charging extra for dairy-free milk at the beginning of 2022, it still charges extra in some locations such as the US.

Vegan milk upcharge

McCartney has therefore teamed up with PETA to pen a letter to Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson, who retires from office on 4th April.

The letter reads: “It recently came to my attention that Starbucks in the USA has an extra charge for plant-based milks as opposed to cow’s milk.

 “I must say this surprised me as I understand that in other countries like UK and India, there is the same charge for both types of milk and I would like to politely request that you consider this policy also in Starbucks USA.”

He added: “I sincerely hope that for the future of the planet and animal welfare you are able to implement this policy.”

PETA has been pushing Starbucks to ditch the up to 80 cents extra it charges for lattes made with plant milks rather than dairy for a while now.

The charity in a statement added that Johnson has even acknowledged that cow’s milk is the company’s biggest source of carbon dioxide emissions, and that vegan milks are “a big part of the solution” in reducing the company’s carbon footprint.

“So why is Starbucks discouraging customers from buying climate- and animal-friendly milks by retaining the surcharge?” asks the charity.

Several other celebrities including Alan Cumming and Alicia Silverstone have also added their voices to urge the coffee chain to ditch its vegan milk surcharge in the past.

Vegan ambassador McCartney

This isn’t the first time the veteran musician has teamed with the vegan charity to speak up for the animals and promote a vegan lifestyle.

In 2020, he partnered with PETA for his 78th birthday to call on fans to  watch the famous video he hosted for the group, titled Glass Walls.

“We called it that because if slaughterhouses had glass walls, who would want to eat meat?” McCartney wrote in the guest blog for PETA at the time.

Last year, he took to Instagram to encourage his millions of followers to watch the hit documentary, Seaspiracy and rethink their eating habits.

Moreover, the musician is also behind the Meat-free Mondays programme created alongside his daughters, Mary and Stella.

• Read: Dragon’s Den Legend Deborah Meaden ready to ‘throw money’ for vegan Stilton

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Mohsina Dodhiya

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