Burning issue: Volunteers will be branded with a red hot iron to highlight animal rights abuses

Animal rights activists will have themselves branded with a red hot iron in a shocking publicprotest against cruelty in the dairy industry.

Vegan Becky Folkard, 34, will burn the number 269 on volunteers’ bare chests – leaving them in agony and scarred for life.

Wealth management executive Becky said: “If one person goes away and researches a vegan lifestyle because of this it will have been worth it.

“We’re taking a huge risk because so many people will see what we’re doing as extreme but, in the past, you had ­suffragettes, which was hugely controversial.

“Females only have a vote now because women chained themselves to railings and ran in front of horses – we have to move with the times.”

As the adults are volunteers, the branding is not illegal.

Animal charity the RSPCA said yesterday: “A lot of people would feel that what they are doing is extreme but if they want to do it they can.”

The number 269 refers to the ear tag on a calf protesters filmed as it was being prepared for sale as veal or leather.

Becky, of Bramley, Hants – who will not submit to the painful procedure herself – said: “The more I looked into the dairy industry the more I thought it was abhorrent.

“There’s an animal holocaust – that’s the only way I can describe it. By supporting the dairy industry you’re supporting animal cruelty and everything that is wrong.”

Becky decided on the demo after watching internet footage of a similar protest in Tel Aviv, Israel.

It showed men writhing in agony after their skin was seared.

She added: “My initial ­reaction was ­admiration. I don’t see it as shocking, although I accept others will. I immediately wanted to be involved and thought, ‘I couldn’t do the branding, that sounds terrifying’.

“But then I thought about it more and ­realised why not?”

MP and animal welfare supporter Mark Pritchard said: “This is a shocking public act and perhaps an indication of people’s ­frustration some politicians don’t take animal welfare seriously.”

Becky will brand two anonymous women and Ben Hannah, 24, in Londo n on March 21.

Ben started a 269 campaign group in the capital. Protests are planned worldwide.