Jamie Oliver shunned by 'fattest city in US'

Celeb chef and TV personality Jamie Oliver was reduced to tears during filming for his latest TV series, in which he tries to convert an American community to healthy eating.

UK newspaper the Daily Mail’s website www.dailymail.co.uk reported that the cheery British food crusader broke down after meeting “serious resistance” while shooting for his new US series, Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution., to be aired on America's ABC network.

The report claimed residents of “America’s fattest city”, Huntington, West Virginia — more than half of whom are obese — were entirely uninterested in the chef's advice.

The filming reportedly captured Oliver crying, saying: “They don't understand me. They don't know why I'm here.”

Even the local Huntington press took against Oliver’s mission, with one local radio presenter reported as saying: “We don't want to sit around and eat lettuce all day. I don't think Jamie has anything that can change this town. He can try all he wants.”

Oliver was left even more shocked after asking a group of school children to identify vegetables, who then mistook tomatoes for potatoes.

Speaking to Caterer Middle East during his last trip to Dubai to announce a collaboration with Jumeirah Golf Estates, Oliver said: “Education is always at the heart of anything I do.

“I think as long as you eat a good balanced mix of everything, it’s fine. I’m not some sort of ‘Nazi’ cook, or eater; I like my food, I like the usual foods that all of us like, I just like other things as well. It’s all about balance.”