Vegan Group Blockades McDonald’s Distribution Centres

Protesters with Animal Rebellion have turned out to four distribution sites they claim supply food to around 1,300 restaurants.

Activists say they want to cause 'significant disruption' and have blocked access at the centres in Basingstoke, Coventry, Hemel Hempstead and Heywood in Greater Manchester by using trucks and structures made from bamboo to prevent lorries leaving.

In a tweet, the group said it wants to speak to McDonald's bosses and have warned they are willing to stay at the sites all day.

James Ozden, a spokesperson for Animal Rebellion, said: "The meat and dairy industry is destroying our planet: causing huge amounts of rainforest deforestation, emitting immense quantities of greenhouse gases and killing billions of animals each year.

"The only sustainable and realistic way to feed ten billion people is with a plant-based food system.

"Organic, free-range and 'sustainable' animal-based options simply aren't good enough."

In a video posted on the Animal Rebellion twitter feed this morning, one protestor said: "I'm locked on outside the McDonald's distribution centre in Coventry, and it feels like the absolute right thing to do.

"I'm absolutely thrilled that we've managed to do this today, because what's going at the moment, what McDonald's are doing, is absolutely horrendous.

"We're in the middle of a climate and ecological emergency and we're still consuming huge quantities of meat on a scale that is just not sustainable for our planet.

"We need a diet that is plant-based and not reliant on industrial farming, not reliant on the suffering of animals and the exploitation of workers."

A spokesperson for McDonald's said: "Our distribution centres are currently facing disruption.

"We are assessing the impact on deliveries to our restaurants and to menu items.

"We apologise to our customers for any disappointment caused."