Daiya Foods, producer of plant based dairy substitutes, has been beloved by vegans and those who are lactose intolerant and craving milk products for many years. Just this week the company was bought by Japanese pharmaceutical company Otsuka for over $400 million.
Daiya’s CEO Terry Tierney believes both companies have “aligned values and vision” and that their partnership will be a “tremendous opportunity to bring incredible benefits of a plant-forward lifestyle to people around the world” despite Otsuka’s known participation in animal testing.
According to a petition to boycott Daiya Foods after the merger which was started this week by a group called Keep Veganism Vegan, Otsuka is a “known pharmaceutical and nutraceutical company that uses animals in it laboratory testing” in its research and development.
Daiya isn’t alone. Many well known “cruelty free” brands loved by vegans are actually owned by parent companies who do test on animals. The question becomes: if you live a plant based lifestyle for ethical reasons, how far can you reasonably be expected to go to research the brands you purchase? Should you still continue to support vegan companies with hopes that they will become more mainstream and lead others by example? Will you still purchase Daiya products?
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