Golden Globes Go Vegan To ‘Send A Signal’ About Climate Change

The 2020 Golden Globe Awards will feature an all-vegan menu, with a three-course dinner made with ingredients that exclude meat, dairy and eggs.

The decision came out of a desire to be more environmentally friendly and to raise awareness about the climate crisis, according to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which presents the Golden Globes. Animal agriculture is a major contributor to climate change, accounting for about 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions, and is a significant cause of deforestation.

“The climate crisis is surrounding us and we were thinking about the new year and the new decade,” Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Lorenzo Soria told The Hollywood Reporter. “So we started talking between us about what we can do to send a signal. We don’t think we’ll change the world with one meal, but we decided to take small steps to bring awareness. The food we eat, the way it is processed and grown and disposed of, all of that contributes to the climate crisis.”

Matthew Morgan, executive chef at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where the awards ceremony will take place, told The Hollywood Reporter Sunday’s vegan menu was a bit of a last-minute change from a dinner that initially was to have featured fish.

Now, the menu includes a chilled golden beet soup and an entree of king oyster mushroom “scallops” with a wild mushroom risotto, Brussels sprouts and carrots, The Associated Press reports. For dessert, executive pastry chef Thomas Henzi is creating a vegan “opera dome,” according to Variety.

The Los Angeles Times notes the event will be the first major entertainment industry awards show to go totally vegan. The off-camera buffet tables enjoyed by stars during the show will also be free of animal products, the paper reported.

The night is also set to include water served in glass bottles to reduce plastic waste. The show’s red carpet, according to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, will be reused in future events.

Actors Mark Ruffalo and Leonardo DiCaprio, both known for their environmental activism (though DiCaprio has faced accusations of hypocrisy for his private jet use), applauded the decision on Twitter.

The planned menu also garnered praise from animal advocacy groups.

“By creating an eco-friendly event, Hollywood is making a powerful statement that sets the stage for their industry, audiences and fans to make decisions that are better for animals and the environment,” Kitty Block, president of the Humane Society of the United States, said in a statement.