I'M sure many readers will have seen the wilful misreporting of the environment campaign Heather Mills launched with campaigning group Viva!.

At no point did Heather Mills advocate drinking rat's milk and it doesn't take a great deal of intelligence to work out that such a claim is nonsense for anyone to make, let alone a vegan who doesn't consume any animal products!

The point that Heather was making is simple - humans are the only mammal (except pets) to drink milk after weaning and that of another species to boot; it is as unnatural as drinking the milk of a cat or a rat.

It has become a national media sport to misquote, misrepresent and attempt to make fun of Heather, whatever she does. In this instance she was helping to draw attention to the fact that livestock are probably the single biggest threat to the planet and are at the heart of all the world's greatest environmental catastrophes that threaten our survival as a species and urgent action is needed to remedy it.

When the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation issued its own report 12 months ago saying precisely this, it was ignored. When Viva! does the same thing the message is distorted.

However we have been inundated with calls and e-mails by people concerned about the effect their diet is having on our planet. Thankfully a significant part of the answer is simple - change your diet, change the world!

For your free Hot! Pack - with recipes and advice on cutting animal products out of your diet - simply contact Viva! on 0117 944 1000 or e-mail info@viva.org.uk. Alternatively write to HOT!, Viva!, 8 York Court, Wilder St, Bristol BS2 8QH or visit www.viva.org.uk/hot JULIET GELLATLEY, founder and director, Viva!