Actor and San Francisco native Alicia Silverstone sent a letter this morning on PETA's behalf to Ghirardelli, urging the designer chocolate brand, which is based in her hometown, to be sweet to animals and bring back its original vegan recipe for its semi-sweet chocolate chips.
“Like most people, I love chocolate — vegan chocolate to be specific,” she wrote. "And science proves that chocolate loves us back. Vegan chocolate is a powerful source of antioxidants and is chock-full of essential nutrients. It improves blood flow and reduces stress.
“That’s why I’m urging you to switch Ghirardelli’s semi-sweet chocolate chips back to their original dairy-free recipe, so health-conscious snackers and bakers alike can indulge.
“As people become more informed that dairy products adversely affect their health, the environment, and animals, the dairy alternatives market is expected to continue to grow exponentially in value over the next few years. There’s an undeniable dairy-free trend, and I’d love to see Ghirardelli take advantage of it by switching back to its original dairy-free recipe.
“I hope your company will be an inspiring model for other businesses in making this beneficial change.”
PETA — whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat” — notes that dairy-free chocolate spares mother cows the suffering that they endure on dairy farms, where they’re forcibly impregnated and their calves are taken from them.
