A cafe owner has urged people to stop their "hate campaign" against her business, which began after she transformed an old greasy spoon into a vegan restaurant.
Anna Southwell claimed she and the staff at her plant-based cafe Sprout in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, have been "abused" and "harassed" more than 12 times since the business opened in June 2022, with some locals furious they can no longer buy bacon sandwiches or a burger at the location.
The previous occupant of the storefront had run a summer-only business and had operated the cafe as a greasy spoon, but after shutting up shop for good during the pandemic, Anna moved her vegan treats into the property instead.
And the 44-year-old businesswoman - who also runs another vegan restaurant, Loves, with her partner Josh Mousley - has now decided to speak out against the criticism she has received after one angry man approached her at Loves last week.
Anna claimed her staff have also been 'harassed' (Media Exposure)She said: "A man shouted at me at soon as he entered the cafe. He wanted to know what I was doing with the cafe in Grove Park. He said he'd come to tell me 'what everyone was thinking'. How it was 'disgusting' that we'd opened a vegan business and how we should 'shut it down'.
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"He told me it should be reopened as it was before because no one's going to go there and it wasn't very good, basically. I asked him who he was and, why he was here, and he said he was here on behalf of the people of Weston to tell me 'what everyone was saying'."
Anna has run Loves for 14 years, and has said that the man's recent outburst was the 12th time she's been "abused" by members of the public since expanding her business to the new location.
And it's not just Anna herself that's been targeted by furious locals, as she claimed that her staff - which includes refugees, autistic adults, and people recovering from addiction - are also being "harassed".
The business used to be a greasy spoon before Anna transformed it (Media Exposure)She added: "The staff don't deserve it. We've worked really hard to set up a vegan business.
"Now, when they're working in what should be a beautiful location in the park surrounded by nature, they've got members of the public coming in and shouting at them for no reason. It's abusive. It's harassment and it's having a really negative impact on us. It's got to stop now."
The businesswoman insisted she isn't trying to "preach" about veganism to anyone, and slammed those who criticise her business before they've even sat down for a cup of tea.
She also said there are plenty of other places for people to buy a bacon sandwich in her local area, so she doesn't understand why her business is getting so much negative attention.
"It seems non-sensical the things they're having a go at us about," she explained, "it feels like a little bit of a hate campaign. A preconceived bias about what plant-based food might be like.
"They're having a go at us and they haven't even had a cup of tea in here.
"We are not questioning anyone else's decisions. We're not telling anyone else to live a particular way. What we're doing is running our business in the way we want to do because we believe it is the right thing for the future of the planet and people's health.
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"Even if they only eat here once, that's OK but my friend said to me, 'if they can't find a bacon sandwich in Weston-super-Mare, they are going wrong somewhere'.
"There is no problem getting bacon sandwiches in Weston. There are probably 200 places within a mile radius where you can get a bacon sandwich. But we're not selling them.
"We're not doing it to offend anyone. We're doing it because we want to make our part of the world a better place."
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