‘Milk the Nut, Spare the Cows!’ PETA Urges ‘Love Island’ to Update Udderly Stomach-Churning Challenge

For Immediate Release:
April 29, 2026

Contact:
Moira Colley 202-483-7382

With production for the new season of Love Island about to get underway, PETA is sliding into showrunner Ben Thursby-Palmer’s DMs with a steamy request: update the show’s “What’s Your Beef?” challenge—which currently involves contestants guzzling dairy from a simulated cow’s udder and transferring milk to their partner by the mouthful—by opting exclusively for nut milk, such as cashew or almond.

In a letter sent today to Thursby-Palmer, PETA points out that while Love Island is all about connections, the dairy industry is all about breaking bonds, with workers routinely tearing newborn calves away from their anguished mothers so that milk meant to nourish them can be sold to humans. In addition to leaving cow families in peace, studies have shown that going vegan can significantly boost sexual function in men and reduce their risk of impotence—so coupling up with cashew milk could help to ensure that contestants always perform their best.

“The simple switch to cashew or almond milk will undoubtedly satisfy audiences and contestants alike while keeping the challenge (and other things) as hard as they should be,” writes PETA Animals in Film and Television Assistant Manager Kevin Cody. “Please, in the name of love, milk nuts.”

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.

PETA’s letter to Thursby-Palmer follows.

Dear Ben,

Hello from your fans here at PETA! We’re grateful that you’ve offered alternatives to cruel dairy in the past for Love Island’s “What’s Your Beef?” challenge, but it’s time to go all the way andswitch to 100% nut milk this season.

Hear us out. The saturated fat and cholesterol in animal-derived foods clogs arteries and slows the blood flow to all organs, whereas nut milk is packed with healthy protein and nutrients to ensure contestants can always perform their best. Studies have found that healthy vegan diets are associated with an increase in stamina and a reduced risk and severity of erectile dysfunction. The simple switch to cashew or almond milk will undoubtedly satisfy audiences and contestants alike while keeping the challenge (and other things) as hard as they should be.

And since the show is called ‘Love Island,’ consider that the dairy industry severs the loving bond between mothers and their babies. Cows make milk for the same reason humans do: to feed their babies, whom they love dearly. Yet on dairy farms, calves are forcibly separated from their mothers when they are as young as a day old all so that the milk destined for them can be stolen and sold.

More young people than ever are breaking up with dairy so we’d be happy to help you source the nut milk if you accept our proposal:

Thank you for your time. Please, in the name of love, milk nuts.

Sincerely,

Kevin Cody

Assistant Manager | Animals in Film and Television

PETA