PETA Gives Zone Diet a ‘C-’ for its Lack of Animal-Friendly Food Options

Getting the Meat and Dairy Products Out of Your Diet Could Have You Slipping Into That Sexy Summer Wardrobe in No Time

For Immediate Release:
May 6, 2010

Contact:
Virginia Fort  757-622-7382

Marblehead, Mass. -- As the days get longer and warmer, millions of Americans will turn to popular weight-loss programs to drop those extra winter pounds by summer. So PETA has graded six of the top weight-loss plans according to how animal-friendly or -unfriendly they are, and the Marblehead-based Zone Diet earned a "C-."

Although the Zone Diet Web site features several vegetarian recipes and even has an online forum for vegetarians, there is an overall dearth of vegan recipes and information about a healthy, weight-busting vegan diet on the site. And the number of vegan foods that we could find under the Zone and Superzone brands totaled exactly zero--even normally animal-friendly staples such as bread were tainted with animal-derived products. How could the Zone Diet move to the head of the class and earn an "A" for "animal-friendly"? By ditching dairy products, eschewing eggs, and offering more healthy vegan foods, vegan recipes, and information about a vegan diet. PETA reminds all dieters that vegans are about 10 to 20 pounds lighter, on average, than meat-eaters.

"Getting the meat and dairy products out of diet plans means less animal suffering and less of you to squeeze into that swimsuit," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "Americans spend billions of dollars on weight-loss plans every year when just going vegan could do the trick."

None of the six companies that were graded received an "A," but the South Beach Diet and Weight Watchers both earned a "B"--eight of the South Beach Diet's 10 "superfoods" are vegan, and the Weight Watchers points plan encourages dieters to eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Nutrisystem grabbed second place, earning a "C" for managing to offer at least one vegan option in each of its food sections. Rounding out the list are Jenny Craig ("C-") and dairy-heavy Slim-Fast, the only plan to earn a resounding "F." Weight-loss plans that help improve your overall health through a vegan diet and that are available at your local bookstore include Dr. Neal Barnard's Turn off the Fat Genes and Dr. John McDougall's The McDougall Program for Maximum Weight Loss.

Click here to view PETA's recent undercover investigation of a dairy factory farm. For more information, please visit PETA.org