These ads have angered a hell of a lot of people (Picture: Robbie Locke)

Gourmet Burger Kitchen’s latest ad campaign just massively backfired.

People have been inundating the burger chain and the Advertising Standards Authority with complaints after seeing the newest posters, and are calling for a huge boycott.

One offending ad shows a picture of a young cow, with the caption: ‘They eat grass so you don’t have to.’

Another says: ‘You always remember the time you gave up being vegetarian’, and a third has an image of a large meat burger, with the caption ‘Vegetarians, resistance is futile’.


#vegetarianism is not a trend that you give up for a crappy burger @gbkburgers pic.twitter.com/Ej98PSG25A — Rebecca (@RebeccaPari) January 15, 2016

The images were posted to one of the country’s largest vegan Facebook groups last week – sparking a huge outcry.

Since then, #gourmetmurderkitchen has been trending

I'll always remember the day I boycotted Gourmet Burger Company #gourmetmurderkitchen — Mrs P (@missy_mcsquishy) January 17, 2016

People have even made their own versions…



https://www.facebook.com/robbiewlockie/posts/10156366021925277

…And are sticking them over the originals

Many claimed it’s unfair that such a huge restaurant chain is picking on a minority

You have also reinforced the stigma behind vegan diets, poked fun at animal suffering and pissed your customers off. #gourmetmurderkitchen — Lucy Ⓥ (@LucyHRichards) January 16, 2016

Making fun of vegetarians for not wanting to abuse animals is low @gbkburgers #gbk #gourmetburgerkitchen #gourmetmurderkitchen — Jessica Chloe Young (@jsscchlyng) January 16, 2016

(A group that, arguably, gets enough flack as it is.)

Some suggested GBK was threatened by the rising popularity of veganism

It seems veganism on the rise when marketing takes a pathetically desperate turn for the crass #goodluckwiththat #gourmetmurderkitchen — Harriet Layhe (@HarrietLayhe) January 17, 2016

#vegetarianism is not a trend that you give up for a crappy burger @gbkburgers pic.twitter.com/Ej98PSG25A — Rebecca (@RebeccaPari) January 15, 2016

Particularly as it was released right in the middle of Veganuary…

Utterly hilarious that the burger voted the best in the world is vegan and then you have @gbkburgers slating veggies. #gourmetmurderkitchen — Sarah Saunders (@SJS_31) January 17, 2016

MORE: The best burger in the world has been announced – and it is vegan!

And many, many people said it was simply bad marketing

Can't help but wonder how wise it was to alienate all veggies and #vegans with the latest ad campaign #gourmetmurderkitchen — Maria Chiorando (@mariachiorando) January 17, 2016

I'm not veggie but even I think this is terrible marketing!! https://t.co/4yHvurJCdc — Rachel Bee (@RachelAnne_Bee) January 17, 2016

Congrats on screwing yourself out of thousands of Vegetarian customers! #gourmetmurderkitchen — Jim Mackenzie (@Jim_257) January 17, 2016

In an article for Eco Hustler, vegan activist Robbie Lockie wrote: ‘Is it appropriate for a corporation to single out and make fun of a minority group on public transport?

‘Given the enormous contribution of beef to climate change it might be time for the company to change tack and communicate something more positive than the derision of people taking action to reduce their environmental impacts.’

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Veganuary, which encourages people to give up animal products for a month, has seen a huge surge in popularity this year.

This month around 22,000 people are taking part – up by about 2,650 per cent from when it started three years ago.

And veganism in general is becoming more mainstream. In 2013, for example, it was ruled by the Equality and Human Rights Commission that vegans and vegetarians had ‘deeply held beliefs’ and are entitled to workplace rights.

GBK told Metro.co.uk: ‘Our new adverts have purely light-hearted intentions and were not meant to cause any offence. We’ve been serving beef as a core part of our menu for the last 15 years and, whilst we’re carnivores at heart, we have an extensive range of vegetarian options available.

‘We value our vegetarian customers and their views, and have therefore made the decision to change some of our ads.’

UPDATE: GBK have now released this statement on their Facebook page.

We've been reading the reaction to our latest advertising campaign and needless to say, we're quite taken aback. The… Posted by Gourmet Burger Kitchen on Monday, January 18, 2016

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How does meat impact the environment? One kilogram of beef reared on a British farm can generate the equivalent of 643kg of carbon dioxide One kilogram of lamb produced in the same place can generate 749kg of carbon dioxide This means that one kilogram of protein from either beef or lamb causes more greenhouse gas emissions than a person flying from London to New York Source: The Guardian