Green Bay, Wis. — In the wake of last month’s massive recall of ground beef by a local meatpacking plant, PETA had hoped to place its blunt new anti-meat billboard in Green Bay, but the city’s billboard companies had other ideas. The billboard, intended to inspire Green Bay residents to chuck their Buffalo wings, steaks, and pork cutlets in favor of humane—and safe—vegetarian fare, has been refused space by city billboard companies.

The billboard reads, “Eat Meat and Die,” and lists bacterial infections such as E. coli, listeria, and campylobacter that are among the risks of eating meat. Urging viewers to “go vegetarian!” and steering them to PETA’s GoVeg.com Web site, the billboard would have come on the heels of recent news reports that Packerland Packing Company, based in Green Bay, recalled 59,000 pounds of ground beef from seven states because of possible E. coli contamination.

Orde Advertising told PETA, “Our marketing area includes a huge amount of dairy population in which we feel this copy would be offensive.”

What’s PETA’s beef with meat? Besides causing immeasurable suffering for the billions of animals cruelly raised and killed for their flesh, meat is also deadly to consumers. Eighty percent of food-borne illnesses are directly linked to meat consumption, but the threat of E. coli, listeria, campylobacter, and other bacterial infections is only the beginning. Consumption of meat and other animal products has also been conclusively linked to America’s top killers, including heart disease, strokes, diabetes, and obesity.

Animals pay the price, too. Chickens are drugged up and bred to grow so quickly that they can often barely stand. Cows are dehorned and branded and males are castrated—all without painkillers. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture meat inspectors, cows and pigs in slaughterhouses are often dismembered while still conscious, and chickens often drown in the scalding-hot water that is used for feather removal.

“Eating meat supports cruelty to animals and puts your health in jeopardy,” says PETA Director of Vegan Campaigns Bruce Friedrich. “If you want to get sick and fat and eventually drop dead of a heart attack, just keep cramming those Buffalo wings, pork chops, and beef stew down your throat.”

For more information, please visit GoVeg.com.