Jacksonville Man Is Finalist in PETA's 'Sexiest Vegetarian' Contest

The Vote Is On--Winners Will Head Off to Maui for One Week

For Immediate Release:
March 29, 2010

Contact:
Kristina Addington 757-622-7382

Jacksonville, Fla. -- What do Heroes hottie Milo Ventimiglia and country music crooner Kellie Pickler have in common? They are the reigning king and queen of PETA's annual Sexiest Vegetarian Alive contest. PETA has now expanded the contest to include the Sexiest Vegetarians Next Door--one male and one female--and 27-year-old Jacksonville resident Daniel Watson beat out hundreds of other entrants from across the U.S. to become one of 10 male contestants to advance to the final round.

Eleven years ago, Watson gave up eating meat for Lent and never went back. He is a hospital corpsman in the Navy and is working toward a nursing degree at Jacksonville University. High cholesterol runs in his family, but Watson attributes his consistently low cholesterol levels to his vegetarian diet. Although he's never preachy, Watson shows PETA's hard-hitting "Meet Your Meat" video to anyone who's willing to watch. Watson likes to snowboard, kayak, surf, and take pictures, and he lists Alicia Silverstone, who is vegetarian and a longtime PETA pal, as one of his role models.

"On average, vegetarians are slimmer and healthier than meat-eaters are, and that makes them sexier too," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman, who notes that vegetarians get all the protein, vitamins, and other nutrients that they need without consuming all the cholesterol and saturated fats that are found in meat and dairy products. "One look at our radiant lineup of sexy finalists and it's clear that they're all winners."

To see Watson's photo and bio, along with profiles of the other sexy vegetarian finalists, please click here. The second round of voting ends March 31, and the two winners will be announced on April 14. Each winner will spend seven nights in beautiful Maui, courtesy of the PETA Member Advantage Program.

Watson is available for interviews upon request. For more information and to vote in the contest, please visit PETA.org or click here.