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Archive for 2010

Moby and co-editor of the book Gristle, Miyun Park, sat down with Grit TV to discuss all things food, factory farming and environment.

Moby’s “beef” is with the subsidization of animal products.

He says these subsidies make meat and dairy cheap, which is why so many of the poor are forced to consume these unhealthy items.

“You go to the inner city and people only have access to cheap, animal products. They don’t have access to fresh produce.”

“That’s why McDonald’s is cheap, why Burger King is cheap,” he continues.

He’d like to see the subsidies cut from these industries.

When you remove the “fat” padding (government subsidies) and price these products based on what it actually costs to produce them, what do you get?

A pound of beef, for example, “Would be roughly around $30 a pound.”

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Dedication Ceremony for PETA's Bob Barker Building

“To truly “go green,” we must start with what’s on our plates. According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, 30 percent of the Earth’s ice-free land is now involved – either directly or indirectly – in livestock production. As the world’s appetite for meat increases, countries around the globe are bulldozing huge swaths of land in order to make more room for animals and the crops that feed them.”

“Then there’s the energy required to operate factory farms, feedlots, slaughterhouses and trucks that transport animals and the amount of water that is squandered on animal agriculture (it takes more than 4,000 gallons of water per day to produce food for a single meat-eater compared to 300 gallons needed for a vegan). And don’t forget the edible crops that are used to feed animals instead of hungry, malnourished people. If we are ever to halt climate change and conserve land, water and other resources, not to mention reduce animal suffering, we must celebrate Earth Day every day – at every meal.”

Ingrid Newkirk, president and co-founder of the animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, in an Earth Day article at the Sacramento Bee titled “There’s No Such Thing as a Meat Eating Environmentalist.”

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Ellie Krieger Pita Chips And Spicy Edamame Hummus Recipe (Video)

Written by Vegetarian Star on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 in Chefs, Food & Drink, Recipes, Videos.

Ellie Krieger says there are three things you need to know about eating well when there’s little time to prepare foods.

Have foods with a longer shelf life, foods you can easily grab and go and prepare foods ahead of time.

In this video, Krieger substitutes chips and dip for pita chips with protein rich edamame spread for a quick, healthy and delicious snack.

Dipping pita chips in an olive oil mixture with cumin, cayenne pepper and garlic give them a kick, which can be compensated by dipping them in a cool dip made with tofu and edamame.

“These are both different kinds of soy,” Krieger says about the tofu and edamame. “Which is kind of neat because soy has been shown to reduce cholesterol.”

All you need for making your own spicy pita chips and edamame hummus is to watch this video.

Enjoy!

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Miami Dolphins v Carolina Panthers

You’ve heard of actors getting in touch with their characters through a change in lifestyle that involves learning a new hobby or visiting a specified location.

Sean Pamphilon, filmmaker behind ESPN’s “30 for 30” episode about NFL player Ricky Williams, lived the Miami Dolphins’ running back life for the duration of his filming.

This included attending the yoga classes taught by Williams and eating mostly vegan.

The episode, Run Ricky Run, is scheduled to air on April 27 at 8PM on ESPN.

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Night of 100 Stars - Arrivals

Actor James Cromwell and NBA legend John Salley will speak to high school students on the benefits of a vegetarian diet after they watch the movie Avatar.

On Thursday, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, Avatar director and writer James Cameron will take 5,000 students from Los Angeles schools to the Nokia Theatre where they will watch the movie and discuss its environmental themes, according to Look to the Stars.

Afterwards, Cromwell and Salley will discuss how to preserve the earth by following a vegetarian diet.

The event is part of the Eco Warrior training and competition where high school students give speeches with the theme of “An Environmental Lesson I Learned From Avatar and How to Apply it in My Community.”

Scholarships totaling $12,000 will be awarded and the winners will be announced during Cromwell and Salley’s visit.

Meeting three celebrities in one day, plus the chance to receive money for college?

Now that’s what you call a field trip!

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Leona Lewis “The Fabric Of Our Lives” Cotton Commercial (Video)

Written by Vegetarian Star on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 in Fashion, Female Singers, Videos.

Leona Lewis is a new spokesperson for the Fabric of Our Lives campaign, which promotes the natural fiber, something Leona says is a great alternative to animal fabrics.

“I love fashion and I’m always finding alternative ways to non-animal products. Cotton is a great fabric,” Leona told Showbiz Spy.

Organic cotton should be your top choice if possible.

Treehugger reports that, “Conventional cotton is one of the most chemically-dependent crops, sucking up 10 percent of all agricultural chemicals and 25 percent of insecticides on 3 percent of our arable land; that’s more than any other crop per unit.”

This translates into needing up to 1/3 pound of chemicals to produce enough cotton for a t-shirt and 3/4 pound for a pair of jeans.

Plus, The World Health Organization says that up to 20,000 deaths occur each year from from pesticide poisoning in developing countries, where cotton is often still picked by hand.

There’s organic cotton for every budget, from retail brands like Nike and Patogonia to upscale labels like Loomstate and Katherine Hamnett.

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Alicia Silverstone Sticks To Diet On Set of “Butter” In Louisiana

Written by Vegetarian Star on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 in Actresses, Food & Drink.

Broadway Opening Of RED - Arrivals And Curtain Call

Alicia Silverstone traveled to Shreveport, Louisiana to film Butter, a political satire movie where butter carving is the competition instead of an election.

Shreveport is no New York City, and it’s not as easy for Silverstone to walk around the corner during a break to grab an eggplant wrap with vegan cream cheese.

She told Wall Street Journal that everyone else on the set, vegetarian or not, has similar problems, but having another vegan in the cast, Olivia Wilde, makes it easier on her.

“Everyone here — both people who eat meat and people who don’t eat meat — is struggling with the food because it’s a very different world here in Shreveport; there’s a truckload of salt, and apparently every likes frying things alot. And there’s a lot of cheese involved. But I was prepared, and sussed out the situation before I got here. One really sweet thing is that Jason, the writer of the film, said to me that he was happy I was there…mainly because he knew that meant he was gong to eat well on the days i was on set. [My co-star] Olivia [Wilde] is also a vegan, so there’s a lot of support.”

Two restaurants in Shreveport that are vegetarian friendly are Counter Culture and Earthereal Restaurant and Bakery, both not being exclusively meat free and the latter serving vegan options.

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Starbucks Offers Vegan Frappuccino Nationwide In May

Written by Vegetarian Star on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 in Business, Food & Drink, Restaurants.

Starbucks products are displayed at a Starbucks restaurant in Hong Kong

Starbucks will introduce its vegan Frappuccinos nationally on May 5, according to The Consumerist.

Like many other drinks available at the coffee establishment, vegan, non-dairy versions have been available unofficially, and the vegan Frappuccino has already been introduced in Los Angeles.

Blogger Quarrygirl took to the web to explain more about the drink:

“The old method to make them used a base that contained dairy, but the new way you basically add a thickening syrup to base of milk/ flavour syrups/ coffee depending on the drink, so as long as the drink is made with soy it’s vegan. The coffee and creme frappuccino bases are vegan, however, the light one is not— and all the other inclusions and toppings are vegan except for whip (duh) and caramel drizzle.”

An email to a Starbuck’s manager by the Consumerist confirmed that indeed the regular frap base and cream base are vegan, but the light base isn’t, so don’t be afraid of fat little caffeinated vegan brothers and sisters.

The light base isn’t gluten-free either, which applies to both the regular and the cream.

In addition, like non-dairy drinks have their own pitchers, the vegan Frappuccino should be made in the soy pitcher.

While this should be standard procedure, it never hurts to ask.

And watch them while they’re doing it.

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