Veganism is bigger than ever, with hundreds of thousands of people choosing to adopt a vegan lifestyle for health benefits or ethics.
But sadly, not all vegans find that their lifestyle is respected by others, and minor mistakes can lead to a lot of upset and trauma.
Patrick Hukins, a childcare worker from Sydney, recently experienced this type of trauma when ordering his usual vegan pizza from Domino’s.
He ordered lunch from Domino’s on Monday but quickly realized something was wrong when he starting eating the supposedly vegan meal.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, he said: “I had a horrible sinking feeling. I had eaten an animal. Not eating animals has become a core part of my belief system.”
The vegan ham & pineapple pizza that was meant to be completely plant-based contained chunks of real ham, according to Patrick.
“I felt shame and pain for the animal. And felt guilt for having unknowingly consumed a product that goes against my endeavors to reduce my environmental footprint as well as harm to other animals… I was shocked,” he went on to say.
Patrick was strongly reassured by Domino’s that it was a ham substitute and that the pizza was completely plant-based, but he fell ill shortly after consuming the product.
“I felt betrayed. I have been vegan for 4 years, and having eaten an animal against my knowledge or consent has really thrown me off as I feel my values,” he said.
Patrick said he messaged Domino’s on Facebook, where he was told the company would “honor” the rebuttal of their employees, despite the customer providing pictures showing the ham was different.
A spokesman for Domino’s Australia also told Daily Mail Australia they were deeply regretful of the error and encouraged others to speak up if there was ever an issue with their order.
“We would like to publicly apologize to our customer,” he said. “This was an inadvertent mistake, which will be used as a learning opportunity for our team members.”
“Domino’s has a 100 percent customer satisfaction guarantee, and each of our team members works hard to deliver meals that meet our customers’ requirements, including specific dietary needs,” he went on to say.
Domino’s have acknowledged their mistake, and from their clear sincerity over the matter, this mix-up should hopefully never happen again.
