Sacre beurré! French foodies up in arms after 'virtue-signalling' bakery chain ... trends now
French foodies are up in arms after a 'virtue-signalling' bakery chain launched a butter-free vegan croissant.
The crescent-shaped, golden-coloured pastry has been a staple of the Gallic breakfast for almost two centuries.
But a Parisian baker has dared to take on the purists by launching a dairy-free version, declaring: 'I'm changing the world.'
The efforts of boulanger Rodolphe Landemaine, a vegan with an interest in animal welfare and climate change who has five shops in the French capital, have been met with a mixture of outrage and incredulity.
Thierry Loussakoueno, a food show judge for the French Union of Bakers and Pastry Makers, scoffed: 'I don't understand these vegan pastries. I can understand people who don't eat meat for whatever reason, and I respect this completely.
Boulanger Rodolphe Landemaine, a vegan with an interest in animal welfare and climate change who has five shops in the French capital, has launched a butter-free vegan croissant
M. Landemaine, who also produces other vegan pastries, said his business is growing fast with new branches planned in other French cities
'But dairy products and butter are just too important in the taste of food and not using them is just too bad and a pity.'
Meanwhile, Olivier Boudot, a cookery teacher, told the BBC: 'It's difficult for me to even talk about making a croissant without butter.'
And dairy farmer Sophie Lenaerts, 57, from Amiens, an hour's drive north of Paris, claimed vegan croissants were symbolic of 'industrial madness'
