PETA Buys Shake Shack Stock in Quixotic Quest to Encourage Veganism

Cult-loved burger chain Shake Shack went public today, and the stock price shot through the roof thanks in part to... PETA. Yes, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. According to a press release, PETA purchased a "number of shares" of Shake Shack stock, enough to give the activist organization "the right to attend and speak at annual meetings and submit shareholders resolution."

The organization is hoping its presence at the meetings will help convince Shake Shack to create more vegan and animal-free options. For starters, they want vegan milkshake options: "A vegan shake spares infant calves the torture of being burned in the head with searing-hot irons during dehorning — only one of many painful abuses they routinely endure in the dairy industry."

PETA is on a tear lately, and perhaps they're onto something: Recently, the organization successfully petitioned IKEA to start serving a vegan version of its famed meatballs.