Vegan Butterbeer at Universal Parks!

Vegan Butterbeer Has Come to Universal Parks Around the World!

8/17/2022

Guests at Universal parks around the world can now enjoy cold and frozen Butterbeer on tap without the dairy topping!

After The Protego Foundation’s Accio Vegan Butterbeer petition garnered nearly 10,000 signatures overall, Universal made the compassionate choice to allow Butterbeer to be ordered without the dairy topping. This decision was announced on Sunday, July 31st, 2022.

Previously, people with dairy allergies, those who are lactose intolerant, and those who abstain from dairy for animal rights and environmental reasons could not get this delicious and "buttery" drink because the already-vegan soda base would not be served without the dairy topping.

Universal released a statement saying, "We are serving Butterbeer without topping to guests who make special dietary requests. This practice is in place at all our parks and allows us to better meet the needs of our guests."

This statement confirmed that Butterbeer is allowed to be served without the topping at all Universal parks containing The Wizarding World of Harry Potter: in Orlando, Hollywood, Japan, and Beijing. The food & beverage staff members at Universal Orlando described the initial meeting where the update was shared as “a rushed update that leadership described as ‘historic.’”⁣

To order Vegan Butterbeer at any of the Universal parks, just ask for the cold or the frozen version without the topping. Note that the base of the hot version of Butterbeer still contains dairy.

We are serving Butterbeer without topping to guests who make special dietary requests. This practice is in place at all our parks and allows us to better meet the needs of our guests." - Universal Representative

The History of the Accio Vegan Butterbeer Campaign

The Protego Foundation first launched the Accio Vegan Butterbeer campaign in 2018 with a change.org petition that was immediately a huge hit among vegan and dairy-free fans of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter and Universal parks. The petition was sent to the President of the Harry Potter Global Franchise Development team at Warner Bros.

As the petition continued to grow, Protego earned public support from two actors from the Harry Potter films: Robbie Jarvis, who played young James Potter, and Evanna Lynch, who played Luna Lovegood.

The campaign received immense support from Potter news sites including MuggleNet, The Leaky Cauldron, Potterish, and Gazette du Sorcier. Press outlets in the Muggle world, like LA Weekly, also published stories about the campaign.

2020 saw the first ever major step forward for the campaign when official bottled Butterbeer was announced, later to be sold at various locations in London, Harry Potter New York, and the Harry Potter online shop. This was the first official Butterbeer product to be made without dairy.

In November of 2021, the Accio Vegan Butterbeer campaign was relaunched. Although Universal and WB had heard about the campaign, they weren’t feeling enough pressure to make a change. The Protego Foundation reached out to the executive food & beverage team at Universal, executives at WB, J.K. Rowling’s legal representatives, and JRK herself.

Protego sold campaign merchandise, released videos, and urged supporters to share signs and messages on social media.

As a continuation of the campaign’s escalation plan, The Protego Foundation scheduled the organization’s first ever protest that was to be held outside of Universal Orlando Resort on Monday, August 1st, 2022. By bringing the campaign to Universal’s front door, the pressure could no longer be ignored.

After gathering over 500 additional signatures over the weekend at LeakyCon Orlando, Universal shared that Butterbeer would be available to order without the topping on Sunday, July 31st, 2022 - the day before the scheduled protest.

This was another huge milestone and step forward for the campaign. Thanks to the support of so many groups and individuals, Universal listened, and we proved that showing demand and taking action makes a difference. This win is for animals, people, and the planet.

The Importance of Vegan Butterbeer

Animal Welfare: Mother cows only produce milk during and after pregnancy for their babies, just like human moms. On commercial dairy farms, they are impregnated once a year and are held in cramped, crowded, filthy barns or lots. They are subjected to cruel industry-standard practices, such as dehorning, having their calves taken away hours after being born, and being sent to slaughter after their milk production wanes.

Health: Many people, especially children, suffer from dairy allergies or lactose intolerance. Approximately 65% of the human population has a reduced ability to digest lactose. No one wants to feel the uncomfortable effects of dairy while trying to enjoy their favorite Wizarding World treats!

Environment: It takes about 12 times as much water to produce dairy milk as it does to produce almond milk and over 30 times as much water as soy. Studies estimate that dairy emits around three times more greenhouse gasses than plant-based milks. The production of plant milk requires smaller land areas and the trees absorb carbon emissions rather than producing more.

People with dairy allergies and those who choose to abstain from dairy due to animal welfare concerns deserve to experience everything that The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has to offer, including the most popular themed drink offering.

Among those who have been celebrating this news with us are VegNews, MuggleNet, Universal Orlando Vegans, Gazette du Sorcier, Vegan Disney Food, and many others.

CHEERS and THANK YOU to everyone who signed our petition and helped us make this happen! The next step is a full Butterbeer experience, complete with a dairy-free whipped topping. We are keeping our campaign going until Universal agrees to take the final step.

Please sign our Accio Vegan Butterbeer petition to ask Universal to add a vegan topping!