By Victoria LindreaBBC News
image captionAbout 50 activists are stopping deliveries leaving four McDonald’s depots across the UK
Animal rights protesters say they are blockading four McDonald’s distribution centres in the UK to stop deliveries to the fast-food chain’s 1,300 UK outlets.
Animal Rebellion said about 50 activists were using trucks and bamboo structures to stop lorries leaving depots in Hemel Hempstead, Basingstoke, Coventry and Heywood, Greater Manchester.
The group is targeting McDonald’s “for its role in the climate emergency”.
McDonald’s has yet to comment.
Animal Rebellion spokesman James Ozden, at a protest in Coventry, accused the meat and dairy industry of “destroying our planet”.
Mr Ozden told the BBC the meat and dairy industry was “causing huge amounts of rainforest deforestation, emitting vast quantities of greenhouse gases and killing billions of animals each year”.
“The only sustainable and realistic way to feed 10 billion people is with a plant-based food system. Organic, free-range and ‘sustainable’ animal-based options simply aren’t good enough”, he said.
Animal Rebellion wants McDonald’s to commit to becoming fully plant-based by 2025.
image captionProtesters have tied themselves to bamboo structures which are blocking the depot’s entrance and exit
The group tweeted that it intends to remain at the sites for at least 24 hours and aims to cause “significant disruption” to McDonald’s as the restaurants restock over the weekend.
A second tweet called on McDonald’s to personally engage with the activists at the protest sites, saying: “We’re waiting for them to come talk to us, or we’ll stop their distribution to all 1,300 restaurants ALL DAY.”
Animal Rebellion describes itself as “a mass movement that uses nonviolent civil disobedience to bring about a transition to a just and sustainable plant-based food system”.
In November last year, the fast food giant announced plans to introduce a line of plant-based meat alternatives called “McPlant” in 2021.
Animal Rebellion says it is stopping restaurant supplies from leaving four UK distribution centres.
