On November 18, Burger King was sued by a vegan customer who accused the restaurant of contaminating its Impossible Whopper, meatless version of their Whopper, by cooking them on the same grills as their meat burgers. The lawsuit is seeking damages for all U.S. purchasers of the Impossible Whopper, as well as an injunction that forces Burger King to disclose that the Impossible Whoppers are cooked on the same grill as beef burgers. This story took to Twitter, where the #ImpossibleWhopper hashtag trended, and users offered their opinions on the lawsuit. Many users had strong opinions, with a large majority expressing their discontent with the lawsuit, and voicing there concern over the lawsuit showing vegans and vegetarians in a negative light.
You hipster vegans are going to ruin it for the rest of us chill ass vegans that are just trying to get a meal. #vegan #whatveganseat #BurgerKing #impossiblewhopperhttps://t.co/PX7Y3mWQhB
— Mikerocosm 🧢 (@Mikeroc0sm) November 18, 2019
Of course one vegetarian has to go and make us all look bad by suing Over the #ImpossibleWhopper being cooked on the same grill. Of course it is. Unless you go to a 100% veg restaurant your food will be cooked with meat. 99% of vegetarians know this.
— Amy (@bunnyhugger75) November 19, 2019
What a fucking moron. This asshat makes us all look bad. Real vegans do their research first. We know meat makes us sick if we ingest it. It takes two minutes to learn, then we ask, and we make goddamn sure *before* we trust NON-vegans with cooking our meals. #ImpossibleWhopper https://t.co/VSOJ9f5EJ4
— Gloom The Weed Pokèmon🍃 (@Choto_TheBright) November 19, 2019
Vegans suing Burger King over the #impossiblewhopper is so stupid. It's not for you! It's for omnis trying to make "healthier" choices. If you want your own, buy the impossible burger at any store and make it yourself for half the cost! #lazyfucks
— Tina (@islandreader11) November 19, 2019
However, some people had opposing viewpoints, and expressed their opinions about why the lawsuit was valid. These Twitter users argued in defense of vegans, and why Burger King should be held accountable.
I can understand that there are individuals out there who adhere to a vegan 🌱 lifestyle because of moral and ethical concerns about the treatment of animals, but there are also those who are allergic and can’t process meat. Wake up, BK. This is pathetic. #ImpossibleWhopper https://t.co/wGGlPobfGa
— Faith Logan (@TheFaithLogan) November 19, 2019
#Vegan News 🌱 I agree with THIS one .@BurgerKing You need a separate grill for the #ImpossibleWhopper. No vegan wants tortured flesh on their plant based burger. Can't believe you didn't think of this. I won't be supporting your menu until this is fixed. https://t.co/iol2Hdc7Sl
— Prancer530 (@PrancerPaw) November 18, 2019
Vegan vs. non vegan debates seem common in our culture, with both sides usually having very strong opinions. It will be interesting to follow this case to see how Burger King will respond, and continue to watch opposing audiences continue to express their opinions.
It is surprising to me that the majority of Vegans did not even agree with the lawsuit. Most people were completely outraged that someone would sue Burger King over this issue. I do wonder if this event would have gotten as much attention without social media and the ease of sharing opinions. Burger King is definitely receiving attention from all of this buzz, but I’m not exactly sure if it is positive or negative considering the mix of opinions.