'Dangerous and unlawful': Aussie takes swipe at 'deceptive' vegan influencer

An Australian YouTuber has taken aim at a former US vegan influencer who documented her 30-day meat only diet, claiming it was a marketing gimmick.

Alyse Parker, a former vegan with more than 700,000 subscribers on YouTube, made headlines earlier this month when she uploaded a 35 minute long video detailing her attempt at the ‘carnivore challenge’.

Ms Parker claimed the extreme diet gave her a “way better digestive system than when she was vegan” and that she was “more focused and healthy” after cutting all fruits and vegetables from her diet.

A Queensland vegan and YouTuber who goes by the username Freelee The BananaGirl retaliated with her own video uploaded on December 13, calling the challenge “dangerous and unlawful”.

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Ms Ratcliffe described Ms Parker as a “paid actress in a commercial” as the video was sponsored by a door-to-door meat delivery service called Butcher Box.

Paid sponsorships are common on YouTube and there is an option when uploading videos for the creator to alert viewers by ticking a box that states “video contains paid promotion such as paid promotion”.

Ms Parker did not tick that box but did write a disclaimer in the description that read “this video was sponsored by ButcherBox”. She also included a unique referral code, possibly allowing her to receive profits from each purchase made using the code.

Ms Ratcliffe said there was no proof Ms Parker carried out the ‘carnivore challenge’.

The only footage of the former vegan eating meat was uploaded nine months prior and there is no recent vision to prove she stuck to the diet.

“Once I watched the video I realised it was just a huge advertisement for the company ButcherBox which is a big problem,” Ms Ratcliffe told News.com.au

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