Here's something Alicia Silverstone isn't clueless about: pork-barrel politics.
The 31-year-old actress has recorded a phone message on behalf of an activist group seeking to halt the practice of high-calorie foods being offered on school lunch menus.
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a group of doctors pressuring Congress to tackle the child obesity epidemic, began sending out Silverstone's automated message to approximately 3,000 voters in Los Angeles on Friday. Several thousand more are expected get the house call Monday.
In it, Silverstone urges citizens to call the Washington, D.C., office of California Senator Barbara Boxer and demand she support the Fresh Act, which would reduce the number of fatty meats and dairy products in public schools and substitute them with more nutritious fruits and vegetables.
Silverstone's beef? She and the docs are looking to end subsidies to agribusinesses that result in the production of foods loaded with fat and cholesterol.
"In the next few days, the senate will decide whether to continue massive subsidies for meat, dairy products and other foods that are fueling the epidemic of childhood obesity," says Silverstone in the minute-long recording. "Our kids need help, and now we have a chance to change things. A good amendment to the Farm Bill, called the Fresh Act, will cut subsidies for unhealthy foods." (Listen to full message.)
The senate is expected to take up the bill and accompanying amendment later this week.
A vegan, Silverstone has previously promoted her carnivore-eschewing beliefs by appearing in the buff in sexy ads for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Best known for her appearances in Aerosmith videos and such box-office hits as The Crush and Clueless, Silverstone more recently appeared in the stage adaptation of The Graduate, as well as onscreen in 2005's Beauty Shop opposite Queen Latifah and last year's Hallmark Hall of Fame TV movie Candles on Bay Street.