Hilarious, talented and passionate animal lovers—that's how you might describe both Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi. But green? Well, yes. The couple went vegan in 2008, and in doing so, they've drastically reduced their environmental footprint.

It all started when they were dating.

"When Ellen and I first got together, I was wearing a fur and she was wearing leather—like really expensive Italian calf-skin shoes," de Rossi told the New York Post.

"She was giving me a hard time about wearing a fur and I said 'Why is a fox any more important than a cow?' So we just kind of took that idea and went all the way with it."

The couple started re-thinking the ways they consumed animal products, from food to shoes. They quietly made the shift in their daily life, starting with phasing out meat and poultry products. But giving up dairy wasn't as easy, DeGeneres told US Magazine.

"I stopped eating meat first, and when I stopped eating dairy—which was hard, because I loved cheese—I lost the most weight. I eat a lot of vegetables."

The couple went completely vegan in early 2008, and when they wed at their home in August 2008, their reception featured a vegan meal made by their then-personal chef David Silberkleit, and their wedding cake was a red velvet vegan creation from Sweet Lady Jane.

DeGeneres has been talking about going vegan quite a bit recently. She's had her personal chef Roberta Martin (who cooks nothing but vegan foods) on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to talk about vegan cooking. Her show's website is loaded with information about living vegan, including recipes and tips on getting enough protein. She also explains why she went vegan.

"I personally chose to go vegan because I educated myself on factory farming and cruelty to animals, and I suddenly realized that what was on my plate were living things, with feelings. And I just couldn't disconnect myself from it any longer," she wrote. "I read books like Diet for a New America and saw documentaries like Earthlings and Meet your Meat, and it became an easy choice for me."

Preventing animal cruelty is a fantastic reason to go vegan, but there are significant environmental benefits as well.

Livestock and poultry farming take a toll on the Earth. Forests are cleared for pasturelands, and fresh water resources are contaminated by animal manure. Livestock is also responsible for 80 percent of all agriculture-related greenhouse gas emissions.

By cutting meat from their diet, DeGeneres and de Rossi have reduced their overall environmental footprint, cutting their greenhouse gas emissions and promoting a lifestyle that helps preserve forests and promotes biodiversity. Move over Brangelina—there's a new green power couple in town.

Cara Smusiak