Mum blasts vegan activists who targeted her young daughter in a supermarket a bid to put her off meat

A MUM has blasted vegan activists who filmed her daughter in a supermarket to put her off buying meat.

Louise Kirby was doing her weekly shop in Sainsbury’s when she was confronted by 12 vegan activists silently standing in front of the meat fridges brandishing placards.

Louise’s daughter Sophie, nine, was so frightened by them she suddenly declared she was vegetarian and her mum claims she was scared by the gang.

Mum-of-four Louise, 38, said: "It was really surreal. I had my head in the shelves and told her about some of the bargains they had when she suddenly said 'I’m vegetarian, I don’t eat anything here’. I laughed and said ‘'don’t be silly, since when?’.

"I looked up and at that point I felt the atmosphere change – you could cut it with a knife – it was really scary."

Louise said members of Bolton Chicken Save stared at her while holding placards with animals and slogans plastered across them.

Office manager Louise added: "I’m a carnivore, that’s my choice, if my children wanted to be vegetarian I would support them as it’s their choice.

“But it’s wrong for people to try and force beliefs on to me and my children."

She complained to a security guard who escorted the group from the store in Bolton, Gtr Manchester, just after 3pm last Saturday.

But as they were leaving one activist chillingly turned and said: 'We're only here to save the babies and children' while pointing at Sophie and her two-year-old sister Elsie.

Louise said: "It upset my girls and they shouldn’t make her feel like that.

"She’s fine now, we had a bit of a chuckle about it that night before having chicken stir fry for tea."

Bolton Chicken Save denied any intention to intimidate.

A spokesman said: “Occasionally we visit Sainsbury’s with placards showing a tiny fraction of the animals we have witnessed bound for slaughter in Bolton.

“We stand quietly and peacefully for a few minutes inside the store and then leave.

“Sadly on Saturday a lady became quite angry at us being there.

“One of our activists told her ‘We are trying to save babies’ referring to the six-week-old chickens who are slaughtered around the corner.

“No malice or animosity was meant from this comment."

A Sainsbury’s spokesman said: "This was clearly a distressing experience and we’re grateful to our colleagues who stepped in to help."