Conspiracy theorists spark boycott of Lurpak after claiming billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates puts additives in popular butter

Conspiracy theorists sparked a Lurpak boycott after peddling false claims that Bill Gates was behind a decision to trial the controversial additive Bovaer.

Arla Foods, a Danish-Swedish dairy company which manufactures both Lurpak and Anchor butter, controversially announced in late November that 30 of its farms would test Bovaer, a methane-suppressing feed. 

The additive, which was introduced to cattle food as part of the trial, is designed to reduce the amount of methane they produce in digestion, a gas that contributes to climate change.

After being approved for use by United Kingdom regulators, several of the country’s biggest supermarkets agreed to stock Lurpark butter and Cravendale milk as part of a trial using the additive, sparking a huge amount of backlash online. 

Arla’s announcement of the trial, posted on X on 26 November, garnered the attention of millions with both suspected conspiracy theorists and those with genuine concern taking to the comments section.

Thousands of social media users cited issues around the safety of certain compounds used in the additive – some claimed it could cause fertility issues and cancer.

In other conspiracies, disgruntled Tweeters alleged that billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates was involved in the production of Bovaer, which is developed by DSM-Firmenich.

The company, however, strongly disputed such a claim in a statement reading: ‘Bill Gates is not involved in the development of Bovaer.’ 

Many X-users, nevertheless, were adamant Gates was behind the trial.

One user wrote: ‘Do not buy any products from Arla foods, which include Lurpak, Puck, Castello, cravendale, lactofree, Anchor, and many other supermarket products. 

‘They are using Bill Gates’s harmful synthetic food additives in their products.’

While another concerned online user posted: ‘So even Tesco are in on Bill Gates and Arla! Do not buy!’

Gates, who has previously been subject to claims he is trying to depopulate the world, had actually invested in rival to DSM Firmenich, Rumin8, and was indeed not involved with Bovaer. 

In the days after the trial was announced, mentions of Bovaer on X rose from virtually none to over 71,000.

The UK chief of Arla, Bas Padberg, has now blamed the backlash his company has received on ‘misinformed’ claims on social media. 

‘Perhaps it was Bill Gates that got the attention,’ he told The Telegraph.

‘More people know about Bill Gates, there might be more interest in Bill Gates than us and it was claimed that he is working on a methane suppressor, I think it got mixed up.’

A number of British politicians too joined the row in early December, with a Reform UK politician announcing that he ‘won’t be consuming anything containing Bovaer’ and calling for ‘an urgent review of its use in our food system.’

The additive has, however, been approved by regulators in the United Kingdom, with the Food Standards Agency announcing: ‘Milk from cows given Bozaer, a feed additive used to reduce methane emissions, is safe to drink.’

Mr Padberg of Arla added that the company ‘would never, ever jeopardise anything that was related to the quality (of its food) and would never, ever put our food at risk.’ 

Arla is indeed pushing ahead with its trial despite experiencing a drop in sales following the backlash.

Bovaer is made using silicon dioxide, propylene glycol and synthetic organic compound 3-nitrooxypropanol (known as 3-NOP). 

The latter element, 3-NOP, had previously been considered corrosive to the eyes, a skin irritant and potentially harmful by inhalation, the FSA claimed. 

But experts stressed that during Arla’s trial, no such elements would be found in milk or butter as they are initially broken down in a cow’s stomach. 

‘It has gone through a series of regulatory processes around the world and all are satisfied that it actually does what’s claimed around methane emissions and does not pose any food safety issues,’ Professor Chris Elliot – an food and microbiology expert, told the BBC in December. 

Despite its base being in Scandinavia, Arla plays a crucial role in the supply of dairy products to the UK. It is, in fact, the fifth biggest dairy company in the world.

‘Arla foods date back to the 1880’s,’ the company website reads.

‘When dairy farmers in Denmark and Sweden joined forces with one common goal: to produce and provide the best dairy products.’ 

MailOnline approached Arla Foods for comment.