Pete Evans has landed himself in hot water for controversially spruiking a ‘healing lamp’ he bizarrely claimed could help treat COVID-19.
Aside from receiving a $25,200 fine for his statements, Pete has also earned himself a public savaging by 2GB presenter Ben Fordham.
Appearing on his radio show on Monday, Ben sensationally branded Pete a ‘fruitcake’ who ‘needs to get his head checked’.
‘He is all shades of bizarre, Pete Evans. He’s a fruitcake. Some might say he’s a dangerous moron,’ Ben raged.
Ben then weighed in on statements made by Pete during a Facebook Q&A with fans on Monday.
During the video, Pete lashed out at a follower after they questioned whether the chef had ‘lost the plot’.
‘He should be ashamed of himself!’ Ben Fordham (left) has blasted My Kitchen Rules judge Pete Evans (right) for promoting a ‘healing lamp’ he bizarrely claimed could treat the ‘Wuhan virus’ with ‘recipes made from light’
Discussing the incident, Ben said: ‘Pete, I’m not sure you’ve lost the plot, because I’m not convinced you ever had it,’ he added.
Ben then called for Channel Seven to ‘review their relationship’ with Pete, who appears as a judge on My Kitchen Rules.
‘There’d be some people out there who think this guy knows what he’s talking about, and that is dangerous. He should be ashamed of himself,’ said Ben.
‘He is all shades of bizarre’: Appearing on his radio show on Monday, Ben (pictured) sensationally branded Pete a ‘fruitcake’ who ‘needs to get his head checked’
‘I mean, My Kitchen Rules isn’t doing all that well anyway. So now might just be the perfect time to punt Pete,’ he added.
Pete was fined $25,200 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration for promoting a lamp that he bizarrely claimed could help treat coronavirus.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration issued two infringement notices to Pete’s company for alleged breaches of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989.
‘I’m not sure you’ve lost the plot, because I’m not convinced you ever had it’: Ben also weighed in on statements made by Pete during a Facebook Q&A on Monday (pictured). During the video, Pete clapped back at a follower after they questioned whether the chef had ‘lost the plot’
The celebrity chef allegedly live streamed a video on Facebook on April 9 claiming a ‘Biocharger’ device could be used in relation to ‘Wuhan Coronavirus’.
The TGA said the claims have no apparent foundation and are treating the allegations very seriously.
Any claim the references COVID-19 is banned under the legislation and the TGA has recently issued a warning to advertisers about the legality of it.
‘Now might just be the perfect time to punt Pete’: Ben called for Channel Seven to ‘review their relationship’ with Pete, who appears as a judge on My Kitchen Rules. Pictured: Pete (right), with fellow judge Manu Fieldel (left) on My Kitchen Rules
The fines were issued for the video and for advertising on Pete’s website.
The advertisements on the website claimed the lamp could ‘proven to restore strength, stamina, co-ordination and mental clarity’ and ‘sharpening your mental clarity’.
Pete called the claims ‘unfounded’ in a statement to Daily Mail Australia.
Fined: It comes after Pete was fined $25,200 for promoting a bizarre lamp that he claimed could help treat coronavirus
‘The claims made by the TGA are totally unfounded and we will be strongly defending these claims. It is now in the hands of my lawyers,’ he said.
The My Kitchen Rules chef promoted his BioCharger NG Subtle Energy Platform on social media earlier this month, describing it as a ‘hybrid subtle energy revitalisation platform’.
Pete claimed he and his family use the ‘non-invasive’ lamp ‘pretty much every day’.
Claims: Pete allegedly live streamed a video on Facebook on April 9 claiming a ‘Biocharger’ device could be used in relation to ‘Wuhan Coronavirus’
‘It works to optimize your health, wellness, and athletic performance by aligning and balancing the energy of every cell in your body,’ he said.
Pete also said the lamp is programmed with thousands of recipes with ‘a couple on there for Wuhan coronavirus that you may be interested in’.
There is no evidence it has any effect on the virus.
Pete was slammed by the Australian Medical Association for spruiking the machine.
‘This guy just doesn’t get it. Pete Evans is trying to sell a $15,000 fancy light machine to vulnerable and frightened people to protect them against COVID-19,’ a spokesman for the AMA said on Twitter.
‘He is not a doctor. He is not a scientist. He is a chef.’
Advanced Biotechnologies, the Massachusetts-based company behind the device, have distanced themselves from the celebrity chef’s claims.
Device: The machine (pictured) claims to use ‘Light, Frequencies & Harmonics, Pulsed Electromagnetic Fields (PEMFs), and Voltage. These are all natural energies found in nature’