PETA wants to flavor tofu with George Clooney's sweat?

Things got sticky for George Clooney when PETA received a towel apparently used by the actor at a Washington, D.C., gym (a supporter sent it to the animal-rights group thinking they could sell it at auction). 

PETA President Ingrid Newkirk wrote Clooney a letter requesting his approval to turn sweat from the towel into flavoring for tofu.  Newkirk, who referred to the group as "big fans" of the actor, wrote:

The technology actually exists to take your perspiration and make it into George Clooney-flavored tofu (CloFu).  We could do that and give the tofu away.  Of course, your fans would swoon at the idea of eating CloFu, but what interests us most is that we would attract many people who don't try tofu because they worry that it would be bland or that they wouldn't know how to cook it. ...

The science is pretty straightforward.  According to Dr. Kevin Keener of Purdue University, all animals -- including human beings -- have unique odor profiles.  Dr. Harry Lawless of Cornell University reports that if you use a sample of human perspiration, it is "no different than making artificial chicken flavor for instant gravy."

Gas chromatography can be used to confirm stability of a stimulant matrix, in this case your sweat.  There are trained panels of individuals with sensitive noses who can describe smells to a very precise degree.  They could evaluate your sample and quantify the various odors in order to replicate them and use them to flavor batches of bean curd.

Writing on PETA's blog, Liz Graffeo says "CloFu could make your taste buds and your heart melt. Of course, what's even better is that after everyone gets a piece of George and realizes how delicious tofu truly is, diets will be revolutionized."

Responding through a representative to the Washington Post, Clooney said simply, "As a mammal, I'm offended."

Related:
PETA to protest Siegfried & Roy's final show
PETA protests Westminster dog show (Klan hoods and all)
PETA's Super Bowl commercial nixed by NBC

--Lindsay Barnett

Photo: Kevork Djansezian / Associated Press

Comments

[Moe]

Wow -- Ingrid Newkirk is really off her rocker. Sad, because I am (was?) a big PETA supporter. But her latest antics -- CloFu included -- make me hesitant to give the organization any more money. Hopefully she'll "step down" soon, and PETA will be able to recover from the last two years of Newkirk craziness.

[*KUSHIERA]

MANY GROWN WOMAN WOULD SAY CLOONEYS "TASTY" but NOW IT COULD POSSIBLY BE TRUE P.S HOW ABOUT BRADFU???

[rfjk4ever]

O I LOVE the idea of CloFu, and I suspect the letter was tongue-n-cheek on Newkirk's part. PETA always comes up with creative ways to get people talking...if you'd eat a burger (which is loaded with far worse than sweat!) then why not try Geroge?

[Yo]

I'd rather eat a delicious animal, than a chunk of tofu that tastes like someone's used gym towel.

[peter]

Tofu is still awfully disgusting. I'd take meat over it anyday, like the rest of the world.

[moog]

Anyone who thinks this is even remotely palatable is off their rocker. PETA started off with some good ideas, but now they are just a bunch of whackos who don't do their homework, or know how to "choose their battles". Donating to PETA is akin to funding muslim extremists.

[Love]

If PETA wasn't so snarky, people might respond better to them. They ruin their own cause by being so pretentious and such snark lovers.

[Andrew]

That is disgusting

[Michael]

rfjk4ever, what exactly is in a burger that is far worse than sweat? Mine contain ground beef, salt, and pepper.

[random thought]

so...we'll be giving thousands of people a taste for Clooney-meat?

[Akexis]

So PETA is into some sort of "cannibalism" ?

[Tim Riley]

What a creepy idea from a scummy organization.

[Erra]

Sweat-flavored tofu? Ahh.... yuck? Eww? Gross?

How about taking that so-amazing technology, and making tofu that actually tastes like meat? If PETA could make tofu taste like beef or chicken, then people might accept it as a substitute for meat.

[Animal Rights]

I support PETA's general motives, but this latest act is stupid.

PETA increasingly went from championing the rights and proper treatment of animals into a smorgasboard of celebrity promotions and stupid PR schemes. This is by far the worst.

I really wish they would give animal activists a bad name, when you think animal rights please don't think of PETA. I like to think of them as a radical extremist group within the cause.

[Doug]

Ha ha ha . . . a new study just showed, once again, that eating meat dramatically increases your chances of getting cancer.

So, eat that meat and remember me in your will.