Will the Royal Highland Show ‘Grow’ Vegan?

Posted by on March 29, 2023 | Permalink

Ahead of the annual Royal Highland Show, PETA sent a letter to Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland Chair Jim Warnock encouraging him to transition to a vegan event – the Royal Highland Grow – showcasing Scotland’s diverse crop farming. PETA has designed a cheerful new logo for the event featuring playful mascots “Neep and Tattie”, celebrating the classic Scottish dish.

Currently, the show involves over 6,500 non-consenting animals who are marched, tied up, pulled around, and roughly handled. Sheep are pinned down in terror and shorn as fast as possible, baby ducks are grabbed by children, birds of prey are tethered by the legs, bulls are paraded around by ropes attached to painful nose rings, and horses are forced to compete in dangerous show jumping.

A vegan event, in contrast, could feature fun, family-friendly activities such as a vegan haggis–eating contest, a turnip beauty pageant, and a potato-sculpting competition.

Instead of outdated cow parades, cruel sheep shearing, and food that has been cut or expelled from an animal’s body, the new Royal Highland Grow can celebrate Scotland’s hard-working plant-based farmers and delicious, locally produced vegan fare.

Plant-Based Farming

The change will support the UK’s arable and horticultural farmers and help protect the environment by highlighting all the fantastic crops that can be grown in Scotland, from kelp to oats.

Everyone needs farmers – after all, they grow the oats for our oat milk – but farmers don’t need to keep animals for meat, eggs, or dairy.

PETA released a video last year celebrating crop farmers across the UK, and just last month, we announced the winners of our first-ever Farming Awards.

Edinburgh Endorses a Move Away From Animal Agriculture

The City of Edinburgh Council has encouraged a move away from animal farming by endorsing the Plant Based Treaty. The Royal Highland Show is set to take place in the city, and a focus on plant-based farming aligns with the goals of the treaty.

The Climate Catastrophe Requires Change

Animal agriculture is a leading cause of environmental and ecological destruction, as it requires massive amounts of land, food, energy, and water while emitting huge quantities of greenhouse gases. In the UK, farming animals for food is responsible for around 47% of the country’s methane emissions.

Researchers at the University of Oxford recently determined that current agricultural systems make it impossible to meet climate commitments even if all other sources of greenhouse gas emissions were eliminated.

Cruelty Out of View

In today’s meat, egg, dairy, and fishing industries, piglets’ tails may be docked without painkillers, chickens’ throats are cut while they’re still conscious, cows are forcibly separated from their beloved calves, and fish are cut open while they’re still alive.

A pig lays on the floor as other pigs stand around him or her at an "Initiative Tierwohl" (Initiative for Animal Welfare) labelled pig farm.

Grow Vegan

You don’t need to wait for the Royal Highland Grow to make the switch to plant-based eating – go vegan today.