When will the Macon Bacon baseball team change its name?
When pigs fly, according to the central Georgia team's response to a group of plant-based activists urging them to stop promoting a meat that studies have shown has health risks.
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which describes itself as an animal liberation research and advocacy organization, wrote a letter to the Macon Bacon's president, Brandon Raphael, earlier in June.
It suggested the team update its name to include mention of a plant-based alternative -- like "Facon Bacon or Mushroom Bacon" -- to help their fans stay healthy, according to the letter.
The Washington, D.C.- based group of doctors cited research from the World Health Organization that showed eating processed meat like bacon raises the risk of colorectal cancer.
"They had a contest to pick a name, and they could have called it Macon Noise or Macon Hits and other kinds of fun things," the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine's president, Neal Barnard, told CNN.
"They came up with Macon Bacon, and they serve enough bacon to sink a ship at their stadium," Barnard said.
The Macon Bacon's mascot is a 7-foot slice of bacon named Kevin.
The committee's letter, dated June 1, suggested that the mascot should "reveal that he is actually plant-based bacon."
The statement also requested the team update its concessions menu to include healthier options in place of its current selection, which features bacon-focused items like 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon, Steak-Cut Bacon and Bacon-Loaded Cheese Fries.
The team was "very surprised" to receive the letter but didn't plan to respond until the committee ramped up their efforts to attract the Macon Bacon's attention last week, according to Raphael.
"The group put up a pretty creative billboard in our city (that) had a skull and crossbones and said, 'Macon residents -- keep bacon off your plate,'" Raphael told CNN.
Raphael issued a statement on Wednesday responding to the committee and said the team was "disappointed in the disapproval" of its branding.
"The Macon Bacon do not view ourselves as a glorification of an unhealthy lifestyle; rather, we pride ourselves on being a fun-natured organization focused on bringing families and communities together (in) Middle Georgia and beyond," Raphael's letter stated.
The response also noted the team's concession menu does include a plant-based option.
"With that, the Macon Bacon will be sizzling forever and will not consider a name change. Ever," Raphael's letter concluded.
Raphael told CNN that while the team's intention wasn't to take a stance, "we just don't want to change our name, we've worked so hard to get where we are."
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has targeted other sports teams, like the Milwaukee Milkmen, encouraging them to opt for branding that promotes healthier food choices.
The baseball team is located in the Dairy State of Wisconsin.
"We have been pushing them because there are very clear links between milk drinking and both prostate cancer and breast cancer," Barnard said.
Not discouraged by the Macon Bacon's response, Barnard said their reply of "no" is better than silence.
"What it means is they're engaged, they've heard the message," Barnard said.
"How many fans do you want to have a death in their family? You don't want that," he added. "They're going to realize that and they're going to change."
