Raymond Blanc: 'British women fatter than French because they scoff food'

Top chef Raymond Blanc has claimed that British women are fatter than their French counterparts because they 'eat too much, all at once'.

The restaurateur said that the likelihood of seeing thin women on a beach in France is far higher than in Britain because French women are more restrained and particular about what they put in their mouths.

However the Michelin-starred chef admitted British diners are finally beginning to take heed of his health warnings and pay more attention to their diet.

Speaking at his restaurant, Jardin Blanc, at the Chelsea Flower Show earlier this week, Blanc, 66, shared his thoughts on the differences between French and British women and said: 'The Mediterranean cuisine overall is much lighter and they [French women] only drink champagne, bone dry Brut as they say. Also they don't eat too much, all at once,' he said.

He added: 'When you go on a beach in France you are more likely to see thinner ladies.
'There is more discipline as well here now. Now in this country we are connecting with food in a big way. There is a huge revolution. Instead of the French revolution, there is now an English revolution,' he said.

Blanc is the owner and chef at Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons, a hotel-restaurant in Great Milton, Oxfordshire, England. The restaurant has two Michelin stars.

Blanc said that health should not come at the expense of eating favourites such as fish and chips and roast beef.

'I say we should keep our fish and chips. It is a beautiful British tradition. Let's save our beef but let's not have it every day.'

According to Blanc, who has trained a string of Michelin-starred chefs including Heston Blumenthal and Marco Pierre White, more vegetables and less carbohydrates in British diets could be the solution to the its health problems.

'It is all about mixing in many more vegetables and lets be more creative about cooking them. More vegetables and less potatoes and you can have a beautiful dish,' he said.

In a wide-ranging interview the twice-divorced veteran chef who has two sons, Olivier, 39, and Sebastian, 34, also spoke candidly about the stress he has faced in his career and the toll on his family.