The Meanest Chef on TV, Gordon Ramsay, Fights for Local Food (Sort of)

I heart Gordon Ramsay. I don’t know why, because he’s a total asshole, and I’m not the kind of girl that goes for that – it’s inexplicable. But this latest tidbit makes him lose his shine a bit for me: he’s an outspoken advocate of local food, and even wants to go so far as to fine restaurants that use out-of-season produce, but his own chefs don’t practice what he preaches.

Ecorazzi has it:

Ramsay told the BBC News: ” I don’t want to see asparagus on in the middle of December. I don’t want to see strawberries from Kenya in the middle of March. I want to see it home grown.” However, a surge of bloggers have begun to attack Ramsay’s own restaurants (he has 20 in the UK) for menu items like “tropical fruit desserts” and “ravioli of Italian winter squash.”

In response, Ramsay’s people say (and remember they’re British so ignore the strange spellings): “Gordon Ramsay Holdings recognises the importance of sourcing ingredients which are both local and within season. Nevertheless, the overriding concern for all our chefs is they use the highest quality produce, and therefore in some cases, they source ingredients from further afield.”

If the quality of an ingredient you want to use sucks, don’t order it from far away – change your menu temporarily (aren’t these places all about constantly changing menus?). And to Gordon Ramsay, I say – if you’re going to talk smack about restaurants using out-of-season produce, make damn sure your own restaurants always use local food, 100% of the time. Set an example. Show how you can create a great menu with items grown in your area. It’s ridiculous to talk about fines when you’d be the recipient of many of them yourself.

Link [Ecorazzi]
Photo credit: Fox

Whaaa? Naomi Campbell Honored for Renewable Energy Activism

April Fool’s Day is long over, so there doesn’t seem to be a good explanation for this. Have we somehow entered an alternate reality in which Paris Hilton is the Secretary of State, Britney Spears has become head of the Midwest Conservative Moms Association and Colin Farrell is a priest? Ecorazzi reports that temperamental British model Naomi Campbell, who’s best known for hurling objects at her assistants, has been given an award for supposed achievements in renewable energy activism.

Ecorazzi has it:

Apparently, a fresh new organization that’s literally nowhere to be found online beyond their website, organized the gala at the United Nations last Friday. Called the International Renewable Energy Organization (IREO), their Diamond Awards for Renewable Energy event was meant as an introduction to the new org and an opportunity to honor those making strides in alternative energy.

Leonardo DiCaprio was listed as an attendee on the invite, but apparently he caught wind of the shady intentions of the honors and jumped ship. Other celebrities like Heidi Klum and Patrick Dempsey did manage to show, but we’re not sure exactly why. Joining Campbell in the honors was Petra Nemcová - but at least this is one famous fashion model that has actually helped address the issue of renewables.

The only thing we can remember Campbell doing is picking up trash as part of her community service (for assaulting an assistant), making plans to develop a casino and hotel on a coastal sanctuary for turtles in Kenya, and wearing animal fur and skins for nearly every photo opportunity. What a brilliant choice!

Seems like IREO is just fishing for publicity by inviting any celebrities that might be likely to show up. Not a great way to start an organization, especially if they want to be taken seriously.

Link [Ecorazzi]

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Simon I-Could-Give-A-Shit Cowell Tops List of Celebrity Polluters

Appalling and horrendous: not just the singing on American Idol (who watches that these days?) but also host Simon Cowell’s dirty habits that have made him the top celebrity polluter. Simon’s average carbon emissions are 457g/km.

Known for flying around in a private jet, he has said that he prefers to travel that way because, as the Guardian quotes him, “the champagne’s better and you can smoke, which is a rare pleasure these days at $36,000 feet”.

The rest of the list is, in descending order, Jay Kay (this guy has enough money to be a top polluter?), David Beckham (no surprise there), Rowan Atkinson (Mr. Bean? WTF!) and 50 Cent (again, no surprise). Bentleys, Hummers, Rolls Royce Phantoms and Ferraris are among the many vehicles they own. Apparently, one or two mega-expensive luxury cars isn’t enough for one person – they each own an average of four.

Surprisingly, 4 out of 5 of them are Brits, not Americans. I wouldn’t have pegged that! Americans are far more renowned for over-consumption of just about everything, so it seems natural that American celebrities would top the smog-peddler list. Learn something new every day! Time to step up the green education, Great Britain, you’re not looking too good.

Link [Ecorazzi] + [The Guardian]

Photo credit: FOX

Following Celebrity Gossip Isn’t a Dirty Secret if You’re Getting it from Ecorazzi.com

I have a dirty little secret (yeah, another one). After hearing a comment by my beloved Tina Fey about the humor on Dlisted.com, I visited and have been hooked ever since. The hilarious and unabashedly offensive commentary can be a refreshing, albeit lowbrow distraction from the gloom and doom of the news that I take in on a daily basis. I must say, though, considering that the posts focus on meaningless celebrity goings-on rather than anything I could call an important issue, it’s not something I can really be proud of reading despite the fantastically funny writing (sorry Michael K).

Ecorazzi.com offers a fabulous alternative for anyone into snarky celebrity news. It focuses on the good habits of celebs rather than their possible STDs, hookups and lawsuits. Read about what celebrities are doing for the environment from driving hybrids to coming out with their own eco-friendly fashion lines, and possibly feel inspired to follow their good habits yourself.

Michael D’Estries, founder of Ecorazzi and an EarthFirst contributor, explains the motivation for running the site:

Celebrity gossip and news is a hot industry in today’s social market. People the world-over are fascinated with their favorite stars: what they are doing, wearing, and driving…and especially who they’re dating. We often overlook, however, how some people are using their fame as a vehicle to highlight and educate on issues important to them.

Ecorazzi exists to help celebrities further their good messages – and to offer the general public a way to follow their favorite celebs and perhaps learn something at the same time. We cover environmental, humanitarian, and animal rights issues as they relate to those in the spotlight. In the spirit of fair play, we’re quick to point how who’s slacking and who’s deserving of recognition.

So if you’re secretly into hearing about what celebs are up to and can’t be seen flipping through a tabloid in the grocery store checkout line, head over to Ecorazzi.com and get your fix, guilt-free.

Link [Ecorazzi] + [Dlisted]

Eco Celebrity Babies: Setting a Good Example with Earth-Friendly Choices

Okay, so the celebrity baby stalking trend is kind of disturbing. Following what adult celebrities do is one thing – it’s human nature, I guess, to follow the example of people in the spotlight, especially those revered as being prettier, richer and more talented than the rest of us. However, their children didn’t ask to be in the public eye and the focus on them, particularly by people who are a little obsessive about it, is just plain creepy.

It’s not all bad, though. Celebs that live a green lifestyle and advocate eco-friendly products and practices in rearing their children set a good example for gossip hounds. Since so many people want to do what they do, seeing them take part in things that are good for the earth is refreshing and positive.

Celebrity gossip sites like Ecorazzi and Celebrity Baby Blog have been highlighting some of the things famous parents are doing to make their children’s lives more earth-friendly. Some of them include a huge increase in the endorsement (or at least acknowledgment) of breastfeeding, babywearing, organic food, cloth diapering, natural toys and choosing organic clothing. Many green baby boutiques have recently gotten a boost from photos taken of celebrities using their goods. It can only be a good thing for the world, as parents mimic the choices of their rich and famous counterparts.

Link [Ecorazzi] + [CBB]

Photo credit: The Little Seed

‘Green’ Celebs Sting & Trudi Admit They’re Not Doing So Great on the Carbon Footprint Front

Environmental experts recently rated Sting’s band, The Police, as the ‘dirtiest in the world’ based on the amount of pollution they generated on their most recent world tour. Yet, Sting and his wife, Trudi Styler, are vocal advocates of awareness about climate change and CO2 emissions. Hypocrites much? Yep, and they admit it, which is the refreshing part. While some celebrities would try to explain it all away, this couple says they know they’re a part of the problem.

Ecorazzi has it:

“Miss Styler tried to shift a little of the blame on to her musician husband, who is 56. ‘When it comes to the carbon footprint, Sting puts his hand up immediately and says ‘I’m a musician and I have a huge carbon-footprint’, she said. She then asked: ‘Are we being hypocritical?’ before seeming to answer the question herself. ‘He has a 750-person crew to bring around the world and it is a difficult challenge. I would like to think that we both work pretty hard for the rights of indigenous people and for the rights of conservation of the Amazon rainforest, but we do need to get around. It’s a difficult one.’”

Styler herself often flies around in private jets and helicopters, and is known for one incident in which she flew a private chef 100 miles just to make her a bowl of pasta.

Michael at Ecorazzi made a good point when he noted that Sting and Trudi would be better off sticking to charitable contributions than preaching about sustainability, since saying one thing and doing another isn’t going to get them any brownie points. My question is, why not cut back? No doubt, with the amount of money these two have, they could afford to make some big changes. While it’s great that they’re willing to admit to their flaws, the pasta incident alone shows they have a long way to go before they could ever be considered ‘green’ role models.

Link [Ecorazzi]

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Lindsay Lohan Lending Her Name to Eco Fashion, Hopefully Getting Some Underwear in the Deal

Lindsay Lohan for eco fashion? Hmm. Hopefully the company she’s working with will donate a few pairs of organic cotton panties, cause lord knows she needs something. Sure, she could afford mountains of panties, but a little encouragement wouldn’t hurt.

Ecorazzi has it:

Lindsay Lohan has agreed to become the face of “Visa Swap” — a pop-up shop of sorts happening this summer in London’s Convent Gardens. The whole idea is to get people to bring their old used clothing to the swap in return for Visa points (based on the value of their swag). A few weeks later, people can then return to trade their points in for others’ second-hand items. Any of the clothing that fails to sell will be donated to TRAID, a British organization that raises money to support communities in developing countries by recycling clothing through its network of stores.

Some might say that Lindsay Lohan putting her name on eco-friendly fashion will get more younger kids interested in the concept, but doesn’t that also give kids a mixed message? They see her simply putting her name on something, perhaps appearing at an event or two, and that’s pretty much the limit of her ‘eco consciousness’. Ecorazzi deems it a paycheck rather than anything of substance, and I agree. So, what’s the point?

Link [Ecorazzi]

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

Radiohead Says, We’re Not Blowing Green Smoke Up Your Ass

Celebrities aren’t generally known for being environmentally friendly, and even the ones who try to put out that image are usually flying luxuriously in private jets with huge entourages. Practicing what they preach really isn’t all that common. Radiohead, however, is showing that they’re more than just talk: they refused to fly from England to the U.S. for a gig on Conan, and luckily the studio accommodated them.

Ecorazzi has it:

Conan O’Brien invited the group to play on his show last night, but Thom Yorke and the gang decided the planet would be better off if they didn’t all get on a plane and fly across the Atlantic for the gig. So instead, they decided to compromise by jamming via satellite — something that aligned perfectly for NBC’s Green Is Universal initiative happening all this week.

Good for NBC for playing along and greenlighting the satellite idea, but ‘Green Week’ shouldn’t be the only time it happens. Let’s hope we see more of this sort of thing in the future, year-round. There’s no reason why bands – or any celebs, for that matter – need to be physically present for performances or interviews, and they can save an incredible amount of pollution that way. Radiohead’s move, for example, saved the equivalent to driving a car for an entire year.

Link [Ecorazzi]

Photo credit: Flickr user nsanch

Harrison Ford ‘Deforests’ His Chest Hair for the Environment

Harrison Ford invited cameras along on an expedition, and it wasn’t the fun Indiana Jones kind: he was having his chest waxed. Considering that Harrison isn’t the type of guy you’d expect to see on television undergoing intensive man-grooming, naturally, there’s a good reason for all this. It’s all for the good of the environment!

Access Hollywood cameras taped Harrison as he endured the painful process, explaining that his aim was to “shock people into going green”. As vice chair of Conservation International, Harrison wants people to be more aware of the effects of deforestation.

From Conservation.org:

We believe that the Earth’s natural heritage must be maintained if future generations are to thrive spiritually, culturally, and economically. Our mission is to conserve the Earth’s living heritage - our global biodiversity - and to demonstrate that human societies are able to live harmoniously with nature.

In a culture where dim airhead celebrities flash their no-no parts at cameras for attention, it’s refreshing that a shock-value stunt actually has a good purpose.

Link [Ecorazzi] + [Conservation.org]
Photo: Access Hollywood

Did You Celebrate ‘Fuck the Earth Day’ on the 23rd?

Kevin Nealon and Jack English have teamed up to produce an awesome video that tells you to ignore what the hippie alarmists are saying about the earth. They’ve pronounced April 23rd ‘Fuck the Earth Day’, and celebrated it by burying styrofoam in the ground, among other great faux planet killing acts.

From the video:

“I’m Jack English and I paid for this ad to tell you about a new and better holiday: April 23rd, Fuck the Earth Day! In the past several years, the Bush Administration has cast a lot of good doubt on liberal media myths like deforestation and global warming, and as a true patriotic American, I blindly follow what my wise elector leaders tell me to.”

Check it out at Break.com!

Link [Break] via [Ecorazzi]

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