PETA are well known for their rather shocking and controversial advertisements and certainly know how to push the boundaries and attract attention with their campaigns. You may remember last November they released a hilarious video ad to try and sex up vegetables called ‘Stay Firm and Fresh’ which featured some super-sleazy looking male models enthusiastically gyrating their groins and proudly swinging some ‘healthy protrusions’ from their nether regions!

This time the animal rights group decided to give shoppers in Newscastle’s city centre a bit of a shock with their protest against animal abuse in the food industry.

PETA used female model Natalie Overton, who is also a vegan, for the campaign. She wore flesh-coloured underwear and posed on a giant plate next to Grey’s Monument in Newcastle to highlight the organisation’s “30-day pledge to go vegan”.

Natalie, a 27-year-old counselling student from Longbenton, was was laid out with giant cutlery, some salad and sauce and said: “Chickens aren’t nuggets, and pigs aren’t pork chops – they’re intelligent beings who deserve respect.

“With all the delicious mock meats and faux dairy products available these days, there’s never been a better time to go vegan.”

“All animals are made of the same flesh, blood and bone, so when it comes to suffering, there is no difference between a cow, a chicken, a dog and any other animal.

“We all have the same capacity to feel fear and pain and share the same desire to live, have families and do what is natural to us.”

A PETA spokesman pointed out that the UN has said that the meat and dairy industries are among the leading causes of global climate change. It will run the pledge event in support of World Vegan Month which runs throughout November.

PETA says anyone taking part in the pledge will remove 100 animals from the food industry. If you fancy giving it a go – going vegan that is, not attaching a cucumber and 2 avocados to your trousers and dancing around – then head over to www.peta.org.uk for some top tips on eating out, mouth-watering recipes and tasty animal-friendly snacks.

We think Natalie was very brave posing semi-naked in front of all those people and brrrr she must have been cold! Would you be prepared to lay on a plate all day for a modelling job?