PETA storms Burberry AGM to call for justice in cashmere industry

While Burberry’s annual general meeting may have already had much to discuss in the way of a new CEO and plans to counter continued poor performance, the biggest upset actually came from that of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

Representatives of the animal rights organisation stormed the meeting chanting “shame on Burberry, cashmere is cruel” while holding signs that read: “Burberry: Cashmere is bloody cruel”.

The protesters were eventually escorted out of the boardroom and off the premises but not before an attendee of the event was able to capture the event to later post on social media.

Following their removal, another seated protester spoke up to ask chairman Gerry Murphy, who was leading the meeting, about allegations of animal cruelty in the brand’s cashmere supply chain.

Murphy ultimately denied the claims before noting that Burberry had already conducted an investigation and found no wrongdoing, adding that “cashmere remains an extremely popular fabric in the luxury goods industry”.

Despite his response, PETA UK vice president of corporate projects, Yvonne Taylor, stood by the organisation’s call in a press statement requesting for “Burberry’s new CEO, Joshua Schulman, to stop turning a blind eye to goats’ suffering and ditch cashmere immediately”.

Between 2022 and 2023, PETA conducted investigations and found concerning animal cruelty practices within cashmere operations in China and Mongolia, where one supplier it alleged had ties to Burberry.