Celebrity Chefs

Chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Controversial Take on Puppy Meat

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Chef Hugh “Fearlessly-Eatsitall” Fearnley-Whittingstall is at it again, pushing society’s buttons

by declaring that people who eat pigs should be able to eat puppies too.

According to Radio Times, the controversial chef told them that “You can’t object [to eating puppies], unless you also object to the farming of pigs. It’s an artificial construct of our society, a cultural decision, to make pets out of dogs and meat out of pigs: both animals could be used the other way round.”

Being a newly-converted vegetarian, he also said though that his stand on “high-welfare organic puppy farms” is just a matter of principle, and that he wouldn’t really eat puppies in practice, at least not unless he’s starving. While the statement is likely just him trying to point out his new found love for animals and his stance on the undesirability of eating pork, they are not going down well at all, especially with the RSPCA, WSPA, and other animal welfare advocates.

An RSPCA spokesperson already told the Daily Mail that even if the chef’s “comments may seem sensible but are actually quite controversial – especially when dogs are our most popular and loved pet.”

WSPA, on the other hand, is clearly against the issue as they have been working on ending the dog meat trade in South Korea for more than a decade now. According to their website, “The commercial production of dog meat involves cruelty at every stage, from ‘dog farm’ or street capture through to transport

and killing.” And as Dr Les Sims of the Hong Kong Government Agriculture Fisheries and Conservation Department has stated (via The Telegraph), “No country in the world has developed a humane way of raising and slaughtering dogs, and in our opinion, it cannot be done”.

Chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall may say that eating pigs is no different than eating puppies, but what do you say? Anyone care for a hot dog?

Image Credit: Gazzat and Fern Hill Farm

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Originally posted on October 15, 2011 @ 10:56 am

Mario Batali Becomes Advocate For Meatless Monday

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In some parts of the world, Fridays are considered to be a “meatless” day. That is, some people do not eat pork, beef, or any other animal flesh (except for fish and other seafood). I think this is because Friday is traditionally believed to be the day that Jesus Christ died. I could be wrong about the reason, but in any case, I am sure about this: Iron Chef Mario Batali has joined a cause. The Meatless Monday cause.

What’s it about? The initiative is being carried out by The Monday Campaigns, together with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The main goal is to cut back on the consumption of meat by 15% by not consuming meat on Mondays.

Now why would they want to do that? The answer is simple: eating less meat can be good for your health. Eating less meat also contributes to the efforts to save the planet.

The idea is noble, and the implementation quite simple – theoretically. For meat lovers, it might not be as easy.

Anyhow, famed celebrity chef Mario Batali, who is known for his love of meat, has decided to join the cause. It might seem ironic at first, since he has this awesome way with all sorts of meat. However, the chef himself justifies his commitment to Meatless Mondays:

“The fact is, most people in the U.S. eat way more meat than is good for them or the planet, Asking everyone to go vegetarian or vegan isn’t a realistic or attainable goal. But we can focus on a more plant-based diet. That’s why I’m such a big believer in the Meatless Monday movement!”

So how’s the chef going to go about it? All of his restaurants – all 14 of them – will be serving at least two vegetarian options every Monday. Pretty cool, although it would have been more radical if he had decided not to serve meat at all on Mondays, right?

Originally posted on May 9, 2010 @ 3:33 pm