The latest victims of hate crime? Vegans!

MOST people might welcome an unexpected delivery of pizza – but not if you are vegan and it’s covered in meat toppings.

It’s exactly what happened repeatedly to one vegan family – and is just one example of a reported surge in ‘offences’ against vegans, prompting calls for such behaviour to be classed as a hate crime.

A total of 172 crimes relating t o vegans occurred over t he past fi ve years, according to freedom of information responses from 33 police forces compiled by The Times.

Although that may seem like a small figure, the number of ‘vegan crimes’ has increased eightfold since 2015. These include a man who declared he wanted to ‘ kill vegans’ before punching his vegan vi ct i m in t he chest. Another involved a vegan assaulted by a delivery driver for photographing chickens on their way to slaughter.

Veganism has surged in popularity in recent years, with numbers quadrupling between 2014 and last year, according to polling firm Ipsos Mori, and a landmark legal ruling in January this year found that those who are vegan for ethical reasons should be afforded similar legal protections in British workplaces to those who hold religious beliefs.

The judgment means that ethical vegans now share the same rights afforded to people on the basis of age, sex, race, disability and sexual orientation.

Ethical vegans strictly adhere to plant-based food, but go further than dietary vegans by avoiding anything that involves the exploitation of animals. This involves not buying or wearing clothing made from wool or leather, or using toiletries from companies that carry out animal testing.

A spokesman for The Vegan Society said: ‘Vegans are regularly on the receiving end of harassment and abuse.

‘This should always be taken seriously by law enforcement in line with the 2010 Equality Act.’