PETA's Sexy 'Lettuce Ladies' Want to Get Indiana off the List of Most Obese States

Group Urges Gov. Daniels to Place Ad on Statehouse Steps Featuring Bikinied Beauty and Urging Hoosiers to Lighten Up by Going Vegan

For Immediate Release:
August 27, 2012

Contact:
Kaitlynn Kelly 202-483-7382

Indianapolis, Ind. -- Anyone familiar with politics knows that "trimming the fat" usually implies budget cuts. PETA, though, means it literally. The group has sent a letter to Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels urging him to put up a pro-vegan ad on the front steps of the Statehouse that features one of PETA's sexy "Lettuce Ladies" and reads, "Step Up o Good Health. Go Vegan." PETA's point? That the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention just added Indiana to a list of 11 other states with an obesity rate of 30 percent or higher and that going vegan is the best way to lose unwanted pounds and keep them off.

Studies show that vegans are generally fitter, trimmer, and healthier than meat-eaters are. Also, going vegan is the best way that anyone can help stop animal suffering.

"PETA's ad would help keep Indiana residents lighter and healthier," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "And residents who heed the lifesaving message of PETA's lovely Lettuce Lady could also lighten their consciences by helping to keep animals from the clutches of the cruel meat, dairy, and egg industries."

For more information, please visit PETA.org. 

PETA's letter to Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels follows.

August 27, 2012

The Honorable Mitch Daniels
Governor of Indiana

Dear Governor Daniels,

I am writing on behalf of PETA and our more than 3 million members and supporters, including thousands across Indiana, to suggest a proven weight-loss and health-improvement strategy that would help remove Indiana from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's list of most obese states. We have designed an eye-catching stairway ad that features one of our sexy "Lettuce Ladies" and reads, "Step Up to Good Health. Go Vegan" and we hope you will help us place it on the front steps of the Indiana Statehouse.

Overwhelming evidence shows that vegans are far less likely than meat-eaters to be overweight (on average, they weigh 18 percent less) and are far more likely to be in better overall health. According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, vegetarians have lower rates of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer than people who eat meat. Healthy vegan foods provide all the nutrients that we need without all the saturated animal fat and cholesterol found in meat and dairy products. In addition to becoming healthier, every Indiana resident who goes vegan will save more than 100 animals a year from the cruelty of the meat and dairy industries, in which chickens and turkeys have their throats slit while they're still conscious, piglets are castrated without painkillers, and fish are suffocated, cut open, or skinned alive.

We'd be happy to send our lovely Lettuce Ladies to Indianapolis to unveil the ad and cater a delicious, healthy vegan lunch of Boca Chik'n patties (made of healthy plant protein and spices but with half the fat and none of the cholesterol in regular chicken) and Gardenburger BBQ Veggie Riblets for all Statehouse employees. We'd also provide all the fixin's, such as baked beans, corn on the cob, and fresh fruit salad as well as vegetarian/vegan starter kits full of tips and recipes to help every employee make the transition to vegan eating. Please contact me to discuss this exciting opportunity.

Very truly yours,

Ingrid E. Newkirk
President