Animals as Food

FOIE GRAS

Foie Gras means fatty liver. It is the diseased liver of ducks or geese, that has expanded five to ten times its normal size. When one imagines what it would feel like if one's liver was ten times its normal size, it becomes clear why the animals must be force fed to make the delicacy. For the last weeks of their lives, ducks on foie gras farms are force fed two or three times per day. They are held tight as a long metal pipes are shoved down their esophagi, into their stomachs, each pumping in a pound of corn mixture -- thus each duck is forced to consume about a third of his body weight in food every day. You can watch video of ducks struggling during such feedings at www.GourmetCruelty.com

Many die before they are slaughtered. In 2003 the ABC affiliate in San Francisco aired footage taken at the Sonoma Foie Gras farm,  showing ducks too weak to stand, being  eaten alive by rats.

In 2004 the state of California followed many countries and banned the production and sale of the cruel delicacy. The ban takes effect in 2012. The city of Chicago banned foie gras in 2006. There is similar  legislation pending in New York.

You can keep up to date with anti foie gras legislation at: www.NoFoieGras.com