Mario Batali, doomsday prepper? He stocks up on endangered Crocs

Mario Batali is taking no chances when it comes to his trademark orange Crocs: The celebrity chef has stocked up on them in doomsday-prepper numbers.

We’re not exaggerating. To start with, Batali told Details recently, he has “probably 30” pairs of the rubbery footwear in his closet already.

But disaster struck: The company announced it was discontinuing the bright orange hue that’s become the chef’s calling card.

Batali, who says he’s no yeller in the kitchen, didn’t take the news well.

“They’re gonna stop the Mario Batali orange!” he blurted. “It’s preposterous! But they’re doing pretty well without me. Nothing lasts forever, baby.”

That said, he wasn’t going down without a fight.

“I just ordered 200 more because they’re about to take orange out of the field,” he told the mag.

And as it turns out, the desire for volume speaks volumes.

“They made a special run for me before they retired the color.”

ALSO:

Giada De Laurentiis slices finger during live Thanksgiving show

Brittany Murphy’s mom rejects claim her daughter was poisoned

Kim Zolciak, ‘RHOA’ alum, has twins, celebrates the ‘Biermann bunch’

Follow Christie D’Zurilla on Twitter and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs and on Facebook facebook.com/ministryofgossip.