2006 'Sexiest Vegetarian Next Door' Contest Winners

The results are in: Tofutti cutie Stephanie McColl and sultry soy boy Ricky House have won PETA's Sexiest Vegetarian Alive contest. PETA received hundreds of entries from gorgeous vegetarians and vegans all over the United States and Canada. After a PETA panel narrowed the list down to 10 veggie vixens and 10 hot hunks, we asked visitors to GoVeg.com to choose the winners. (Check out all the finalists.) More than 250,000 people logged on to vote. The final tally was quite close, but in the end, Stephanie and Ricky came out on top. They will each be sent a terrific cruelty-free prize package and will have their photographs printed in an upcoming issue of PETA's Animal Times magazine!

Click here to check out the 2007 contest!

Winners!

Stephanie McColl
Stephanie, 18, lives in Toronto. A student at the Ontario College of Art and Design, Stephanie is a talented artist and actor. She is also outspoken for animals—she has participated in demonstrations against KFC's cruelty to chickens, and she organized an "Animal Rights Day" at her school. Stephanie raves about the terrific vegetarian-friendly restaurants in Toronto, which PETA recently named one of the most vegetarian-friendly cities in North America. What does Stephanie list as her biggest turn-off? Guys who fish. "There's nothing sexy about abusing a small animal," she told us.

Ricky House
Ricky, 19, lives in Lawrence, Kansas. A student at the University of Kansas, Ricky often travels to Latin America to do volunteer medical work in poorer communities. A big fan of Burger King's BK Veggie and Subway's Veggie Delight, Ricky enjoys soccer and playing music. Ricky cites great vegetarian peacemakers Gandhi and the Dalai Lama as inspirations for his switch to a more humane, healthy diet.

Hundreds of eye-catching vegetarians and vegans sent us their photos. Entrants cited a number of reasons why they decided to remove flesh from their diets. The number one reason given was that they didn't want to support the cruelty of the meat, egg, and dairy industries. Other contestants talked about all the cholesterol and saturated fat in animal products that lead to higher rates of heart disease, cancer, and male impotence. Many entrants also cited the environmental destruction caused by the meat industry as a prime reason why they made the veggie switch.

After seeing this year's fabulous crop of photos, we have only one thing to say: Vegetarians are hot! Generally slimmer, fitter, and healthier than meat-eaters, vegetarians are beautiful on the inside, too, with a compassionate diet that spares animals' lives.

These days, making your body and soul more attractive with meat-free meals has never been easier. Order a free vegetarian starter kit.

And for all the jalapeño hunks and veggie vixens who missed this year's contest, mark your calendars so you can enter next year!