A vegan ended up on the verge of tears after a mistake left her munching on "rank" beef instead of the Subway plant wrap she ordered.
Mhairi Taylor said she doesn't want to eat "murdered beings or get bowel cancer".
After finishing a gruelling day at work, the 30-year-old had ordered a plant patty wrap from Subway's on St Mirren Street, Paisley in Scotland.
Once she took a bite of her wrap, she discovered a beef patty had been placed inside that tasted "really bad" and spat it out. She was left in shock and felt sick.
The deputy hotel manager went down to the branch to notify staff of their mistake, but was met with "vacant" expressions and "robotic" responses which made her tear up
Mhairi has vowed never to return to the sandwich franchise because she felt like "nobody cared" and says she did not receive a response from Subway.
Taking to Twitter, Mhairi blasted the "big beef blunder" and lamented that she had accidentally eaten a "murdered sentient being" and a "carcinogen".
The World Health Organisation states processed meat as a known carcinogen and the NHS warns that eating a lot of it "increases your risk of bowel (colorectal) cancer".
According to Subway, the franchise reached out to apologise to the customer over the "isolated incident".
Mhairi, from Paisley, Renfrewshire, Scotland, said: "I had ordered in. I didn't realise that Subway folds the wrap in a way where it's all concealed and you can't see what's inside.
"I took a big bite and started chewing. I swallowed a bit, and then realised that it tasted really bad. I spat it out.
"I opened it up and thought 'Are you joking?' I was in shock, I was sat there with my mouth open, not knowing what to do. I was freaking out a bit. It was horrible. This wasn't a fillet steak, this was the rankest patty thing. It was so disgusting.
"It was a weird beef patty that is shaped like a plant patty. I was so upset. I was also upset because processed meat is a carcinogen, the same as cigarettes, but nobody is talking about it.
"I don't want to ingest a carcinogen, I don't want to get bowel cancer. That matters a lot to me. As soon as I became aware of this after becoming vegan, it became a huge thing for me. I definitely won't be eating at Subway ever again. It totally put me off. It feels like they took no care in preparing my meal."
Upset with the unpleasant surprise, Mhairi and her boyfriend drove down to the Subway to explain the situation.
Mhairi said: "When I got in the car, I was feeling sick. I went from being starving to having no appetite. I was feeling incredibly nauseous. The man and woman there, I felt like they couldn't speak that much English.
"The man just kept saying to me 'Sorry mam'. He wasn't listening to what I was saying, he was just responding like a robot. It just felt like they didn't understand the words I was saying. He was just giving me a vacant expression.
"When I was trying to explain to him how upsetting this had been for me, I was actually about to cry. My eyes were swimming, my lips were trembling, my body was shaking. I said to him 'Do you know what vegan is?' and he just said 'Sorry mam'.
"I didn't think I'd have that reaction - fighting tears in a Subway, so embarrassing. I just wish there was more acknowledgement of how I felt. There was no accountability. The 'Sorry mam' thing felt disingenuous.
"The anger didn't come until afterwards when I realised they didn't care. I've not received a response from Subway since I emailed. No one has responded for over a week. It feels like nobody cares.
"It was really traumatic for me to eat a piece of meat, but I won't die. What if I had an allergy? It was just crazy to me. I appreciate that Subway has plant-based options. But I just want someone from Subway to acknowledge what happened and how it made me feel and to say that they'd be putting things in place to make sure it didn't happen again."
Mhairi, who has been vegan for two years, says that a similar incident happened with a local Chinese takeaway - but they rectified the situation immediately.
Mhairi said: "Something similar to this happened with a local Chinese. I'd ordered a mixed vegetable dish but the wrong button got pressed and the dish had chicken and prawn.
"But once I flagged it up to them, they were so apologetic and within fifteen minutes, they were running up my stairs with a new order. I won't hesitate to order from there again. You could tell they cared.
"I've been vegan for two years now. Two years ago, I was looking for something to binge watch on Netflix and came across these documentaries called Seaspiracy and Cowspiracy. I had no idea what was going on in the animal agriculture industry. Once I finished them, I went vegan overnight.
"Once I realised what was happening, I was a total vegan. It's an ethical decision, it's about the animals. The health benefits are great, but the animal suffering and exploitation is what really hurts me."
A spokesperson for Subway said: "Subway stores are independently owned and operated with training given to all employees on avoiding cross contamination of ingredients.
"The franchisee has reached out to the guest to apologise and has offered them a complimentary meal. This was an isolated incident, which is currently being investigated."
