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Foie gras (French for "fat liver") is defined by French law as "the liver of a duck or a goose that has been specially fattened by force feeding." Along with truffles, foie gras is one of the greatest delicacies in French cuisine—with an 80% fat content, it is very rich and buttery, with a delicate flavour unlike that of a regular duck or goose liver. Foie gras can be sold whole, or prepared into pâté, mousse, or parfait, and is typically served as an accompaniment to another comestible, such as toast points or steak.

Foie gras dates from approximately 2500 BC, when the ancient Egyptians saw a special culinary appeal in the naturally fattened livers of migratory birds, and began to deliberately fatten the birds through overfeeding. The practice gradually spread north through the Roman Empire, and then further into Europe with the Jewish migration. Today, France is by far the largest producer and consumer of foie gras, though it is produced and consumed worldwide, particularly in other European nations and the United States.

In modern foie gras production, force feeding takes place from 12−18 days before slaughter. The duck or goose is typically fed a controlled amount of corn mash through a tube placed in the animal's esophagus. Due to this force feeding procedure, and the possible health consequences of an enlarged liver, animal rights and animal welfare organizations and activists regard foie gras production methods as cruel to animals. Foie gras producers maintain that force feeding ducks and geese is not uncomfortable for the animals nor is it hazardous to their health. Scientific evidence regarding the animal welfare aspects of foie gras production is limited and inconclusive. Foie gras production is illegal in several countries.

History

Ancient times

As early as 2500 BC, the ancient Egyptians sought the fattened livers of migratory birds as a delicacy. They soon learned that many birds could be fattened through overfeeding and began the practice of fattening geese by overfeeding them. In the necropolis of Saqqara, in the tomb of Mereruka, an important royal official, there is a bas relief scene wherein slaves grasp geese around the necks; in order to push food down their throats. At the side stand tables piled with more food pellets, probably roasted grain, and a flask for moistening the feed before giving it to the geese.

The practice of geese-fattening spread from Egypt to the Mediterranean. The earliest reference to fattened geese is from the 5th century BC Greek poet Cratinus, who wrote of geese-fatteners, yet Egypt maintained its reputation as the source for fattened geese. When the Spartan king Agesilaus visited Egypt in 361 BC, he was greeted with fattened geese and calves, the riches of Egyptian farmers.

It was not until the Roman period, however, that foie gras is mentioned as a distinct food, which the Romans named iecur ficatum; iecur means liver and ficatum derives from ficus, meaning fig in Latin. Pliny the Elder credits the Roman gastronome Apicius (to whom is attributed the sole, surviving Roman cookbook), with feeding dried figs to geese in order to enlarge their livers; hence, the term iecur ficatum, fig-stuffed liver; feeding figs to enlarge a goose's liver may derive from Hellenistic Alexandria, since much of Roman luxury cuisine is of Greek inspiration. Ficatum was so closely associated with animal liver that it became the root word for "liver" in each of these languages: foie in French, hígado in Spanish, fígado in Portuguese and fegato in Italian, all meaning "liver". The emperor Heliogabalus fed his dogs on foie gras during the four years of his chaotic reign.

Postclassical Europe

After the fall of the Roman empire, goose liver temporarily vanished from European cuisine. While it is claimed that Gallic farmers preserved the foie gras tradition until the rest of Europe rediscovered it centuries later, this theory lacks evidence, since the medieval French peasant's meats were mainly pig and sheep. More likely, the tradition was preserved by the Jews, who learned the method of enlarging a goose's liver during the Roman colonisation of Israel. The Jews carried this culinary knowledge as they migrated farther north and west to Europe.

The Judaic dietary law, Kashrut, forbade lard as a cooking medium, and butter, too, was proscribed as an alternative since it also prohibited mixing meat and dairy products. Jewish cuisine used olive oil in the Mediterranean, and sesame oil in Babylonia, but neither cooking medium was easily available in Western and Central Europe, so poultry fat, which could be abundantly produced by overfeeding geese, was substituted in their stead. The delicate taste of the goose's liver soon was appreciated; witnessed by Hans Wilhelm Kirchhof of Kassel, who in 1562 wrote that the Jews raise fat geese and particularly love their livers. Some Rabbis were concerned with the kashrut dietary complications consequent to overfeeding geese, because Jewish law prohibits eating a treyf animal. The chasam sofer, Rabbi Moses Sofer, contended that it is not a treyf animal as none of its limbs is damaged. This matter remained a debated topic in Jewish dietary law until the Jewish taste for goose liver declined in the 19th century. Another kashrut matter, still a problem today, is that even properly slaughtered and inspected meat must be drained of blood before being considered fit to eat. Usually, salting achieves that; however, as liver is regarded as "(almost) wholly blood", broiling is the only way of kashering. Properly broiling a foie gras while preserving its delicate taste is an arduous endeavour few engage seriously.

Gentile gastronomes began appreciating fattened goose liver, which they could buy in the local Jewish ghetto of their cities. In 1570, Bartolomeo Scappi, chef de cuisine to Pope Pius V, published his cookbook Opera, wherein he describes that "the liver of domestic goose raised by the Jews is of extreme size and weighs two and three pounds." In 1581, Marx Rumpolt of Mainz, chef to several German nobles, published the massive cookbook Kochbuch, describing that the Jews of Bohemia produced livers weighing more than three pounds; he lists recipes for it—including one for goose liver mousse. János Keszei, chef to the court of Michael Apafi, the prince of Transylvania, included foie gras recipes in his 1680 cookbook A New Book About Cooking, instructing cooks to "envelop the goose liver in a calf's thin skin, bake it and prepare green or brown sauce to accompany it. I used goose liver fattened by Bohemian Jews, its weight was more than three pounds. You may also prepare a mush of it."

Main producers

France is the leading producer and consumer of duck and goose foie gras. In 2005, the country produced 18,450 tonnes of foie gras (78.5% of the world's estimated total production of 23,500 tonnes) of which 96% was duck liver and the rest goose liver. Total French consumption of foie gras was 19,000 tonnes in 2005. Approximately 30,000 people are members of the French foie gras industry, with 90% of them residing in the Périgord (Dordogne), the Midi-Pyrénées régions in the southwest, and (Alsace). The European Union recognizes the foie gras produced according to traditional farming methods (label rouge) in southwestern France with a geographical indication of provenance.

Hungary is the world's second-greatest foie gras producer and the largest exporter (1,920 tonnes in 2005). France is the principal market for Hungarian foie gras; mainly exported raw. Approximately 30,000 Hungarian goose farmers are dependent on the foie gras industry. French food companies spice, process, and cook the foie gras so it may be sold as a French product in its domestic and export markets.

Bulgaria produced 1,500 tonnes of foie gras in 2005; Québec, Canada, also has a thriving foie gras industry; Canadian chefs use Québec foie gras as a demonstration of national pride. The demand for foie gras in the Far East is such that China has become a sizeable producer; however, Chinese foie gras is viewed with some suspicion by the French.

Production methods

Foie gras production involves force-feeding birds more food than they would eat in the wild, and much more than they would voluntarily eat domestically. The feed, usually corn boiled with fat (to facilitate ingestion), deposits large amounts of fat in the liver, thereby producing the buttery consistency sought by the gastronome.

Physiology and preparation

The geese and ducks used in foie gras production are, generally, Toulouse geese, and sterile hybrid ducks—Cairina moschata drakes crossed with female domestic ducks (Anas platyrhynchos).

Geese and ducks are omnivorous, and, like many birds, have expansive throats allowing them to store large amounts of food, either whole or pre-digested, in the oesophagus while awaiting digestion in the stomach. In the wild this dilation allows them to swallow large foodstuffs, such as a whole fish, for a later, long digestion. Wild geese may consume 300 grams of protein and another 800 grams of grasses per day. Farmed geese allowed to graze on carrots adapt to eat 100 grams of protein, but may consume up to 2500 grams of the carrots per day. A wild duck may double its weight in the autumn, storing fat throughout much of its body and especially on the liver, in preparation for winter migration. Storage of fat in the liver produces steatosis of the liver cells.

The geese or ducks used in foie gras production are generally free range for the first 12 weeks, feeding on grasses that toughen the oesophagus. While still free roaming they are gradually introduced to a high starch diet that by itself leads to about half of the enlarged liver's size. The next feeding phase, which the French call gavage or finition d'engraissement, or "completion of fattening", involves forced daily ingestion of controlled amounts of feed for 12 to 15 days with ducks and for 15 to 18 days with geese. During this phase ducks are usually fed twice daily while geese are fed up to 4 times daily.

Fattening

In modern production, the bird is fed a controlled amount of feed, depending on the stage of the fattening process, its weight, and the amount of feed it last ingested. At the start of production, a bird might be fed a dry weight of 250 grams of food per day, and up to 1,000 grams (in dry weight) by the end of the process. The actual amount of food force-fed is much greater, since the birds are fed a mash composed of about 53% dry and 47% liquid (by weight).

The feed is administered using a funnel fitted with a long tube (20–30 cm long), which forces the feed into the animal's esophagus; if an auger is used, the feeding takes about 45 to 60 seconds; if a pneumatic system is used, the feeding takes about 2 to 3 seconds. During feeding, care is taken to avoid damaging the bird's esophagus, which could cause it injury or death.

Presentation

In France, foie gras, exists in different, legally-defined presentations, from the expensive to the cheap:

• foie gras entier (entire foie gras), made of one or two whole liver lobes; either cooked (cuit), semi-cooked (mi-cuit), or fresh (frais);
• foie gras, made of pieces of livers reassembled together;
• bloc de foie gras, a fully-cooked, molded block composed of 98% or more foie gras; if termed avec morceaux ("with pieces"), it must contain at least 50% foie gras pieces for goose, and 30% for duck.

Additionally, there exist pâté de foie gras; mousse de foie gras (both must contain 50% or more foie gras); parfait de foie gras (must contain 75% or more foie gras); and other preparations (no legal obligation established).

Fully cooked preparations are generally sold in either glass containers or metal cans for long-term preservation. Whole, fresh foie gras is usually unavailable, except in some producers' markets in the producing regions. Frozen whole foie gras sometimes is sold in French supermarkets.

Generally, French preparations of foie gras are over low heat (terrine), as too much fat melts from the traditional goose foie gras. The American palate, used to the more accessible duck foie gras, has more recipes and dish preparations for serving that foie gras hot, rather than cool or cold. The recent (in French culinary tradition) introduction of duck foie gras has resulted in some recipes returning to France from America. In Hungary, goose foie gras traditionally is fried in goose fat, which is then poured over the foie gras and left to cool. It also is eaten warm, after being fried or roasted, with some chefs smoking the foie gras over a cherry wood fire. In other parts of the world foie gras is served in exotic dishes such as foie gras sushi or alongside steak tartare.

Foie gras may be flavored with truffles or liquors such as armagnac. It is commonly served accompanied with crusty or toasted bread. It is often served with a dessert wine such as Sauternes, as the rich, sweet flavours go well together; classic wine and food matching; some diners prefer it with a dry white wine, such as those from Alsace; accompaniments may include onion jam.

Consumption

Foie gras is a luxury dish. Many in France only consume foie gras on special occasions, such as Christmas or New Year's Eve réveillon dinners, though the recent increased availability of foie gras has made it a less exceptional dish. In some areas of France foie gras is a year-round pleasure.

Duck foie gras is the cheaper and, since a change of production methods in the 1950s, by far the most common kind. The taste of duck foie gras is often referred to as musky with a subtle bitterness. Goose foie gras is noted for being less gamey and smoother.

Controversy

See also Force-feeding of animals

Animal rights and welfare groups

Animal rights and animal welfare groups such as PETA and Farm Sanctuary contend that foie gras production methods, and force feeding in particular, consist of cruel and inhumane treatment of animals. Specific complaints include livers swollen to many times their normal size, impaired liver function, expansion of the abdomen making it difficult for birds to walk, death if the force feeding is continued, and scarring of the esophagus.

PETA claims that the insertion and removal of the feeding tube scratch the throat and the esophagus, causing irritations and wounds and thus exposing the animal to risk of mortal infections.

EU Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Welfare

This section may benefit from being shortened by the use of summary style. Summary style may involve the splitting of sections of text to one or more sub-topic articles which are then summarized in the main article.

The Report of the EU Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese, adopted 16 December 1998, is an 89-page review of studies from several producing countries. It examines several indicators of animal welfare, including physiological indicators, liver pathology, and mortality rate. It finds that "no definite conclusions can be drawn concerning the physiological activity of birds in response to force feeding", "the mortality rate in force fed birds varies from 2% to 4% in the two week force feeding period compared with around 0.2% in comparable ducks", shows "force feeding induced hepatic steatosis in the duck or goose which was totally reversible"—"some pathologists consider this level of steatosis to be pathological but others do not", and "concludes that force feeding, as currently practised, is detrimental to the welfare of the birds." It recommends that research "should be carried out into methods of producing fat liver which do not require the use of force feeding", and recommends collection of additional data regarding the health of the animals, feeding methods, animal housing, and socio-economic factors.

The EU report notes that continued force feeding leads to early death of the animal. The timing of liver fattening is carefully controlled so the animal is slaughtered before it becomes a health hazard. An animal that stops the forced feeding process returns to its normal weight. Producers, and the EU report, also answer the criticism of increased mortality by noting that the overall mortality rate of ducks and geese in foie gras production is much less than that of farm raised chickens and turkeys.

"The oropharyngeal area is particularly sensitive and is physiologically adapted to perform a gag reflex in order to prevent fluids entering the trachea. Force feeding will have to overcome this reflex and hence the birds may initially find this distressing and injury may result."

The EU committee carried out several tests designed to detect pain or distress by looking at blood hormones and all of them were inconclusive or without any measurable difference to similarly raised animals. The committee observed that ducks and geese in a pen kept away from their force feeder when he entered the room, while daily hand-feeding of ducks and geese is normally associated with a positive response by the animals towards the person feeding them. In an experiment carried out on ducks kept individually in cages, the birds displayed less avoidance behaviour to the force feeder’s visit than to the visit of a neutral person coming along the cages one hour after the force feeding.

American Veterinary Medical Association

The American Veterinary Medical Association states "Limited peer-reviewed, scientific information is available dealing with the animal welfare concerns associated with foie gras production, but the observations and practical experience shared by HOD members indicate a minimum of adverse effects on the birds involved."

Foie gras producers and industry groups

Most foie gras producers do not consider their methods cruel, insisting that it is a natural process exploiting the animals' natural features. Producers argue that wild ducks and geese naturally ingest large amounts of whole food and gain weight before migration. Foie gras producers also contend that geese and ducks do not have a gag reflex, and therefore do not find force feeding uncomfortable. Michael Ginor, owner of Hudson Valley Foie Gras and author of Foie Gras... A Passion, claims his birds come to him and says this is important because "a stressed or hurt bird won't eat and digest well or produce a foie gras."

Industry groups including the CIFOG, and researchers at INRA affirm that forced feeding is not a cruel procedure and even that animals appreciate this treatment.

Legal status

Europe

"Until new scientific evidence on alternative methods and their welfare aspects is available", the production of foie gras is prohibited by treaty except for "where it is current practice" among the 29 countries that ratified the Council of Europe's European Convention for the Protection of Animals kept for Farming Purposes.

The force feeding of animals for non-medical purposes, essential to current foie gras production practices, is explicitly prohibited in six of nine Austrian provinces, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Norway,Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Most of these countries never produced foie gras in the first place.

United States

State of California: Sections 25980-25984 of the California Health and Safety Code, enacted in 2004 and to become effective July 2012, prohibit the "force feed a bird for the purpose of enlarging the bird's liver beyond normal size" as well as the sale of products that are a result of this process.

City of Chicago: On 26 April 2006, the City Council of Chicago voted to ban the sale of foie gras, effective 22 August 2006. In response, several Chicago chefs have filed suit and deliberately violated the law by continuing to sell foie gras. Further, a handful of chefs are serving foie gras without charge, which is not against the law. Even for establishments that are violating the law, the City is issuing warning letters but no citations. In December 2006, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley referred to the ban as "the silliest law" the City Council has ever passed.

Elsewhere in the world

Argentina: Foie gras production is illegal in Argentina as a mistreatment or act of cruelty to animals.

Israel: In August 2003, the Supreme Court of Israel ordered the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture to ban the force feeding of geese, effective March 31, 2005. The last appeal was withdrawn in October 2005, but the law was left unenforced until February 2006.

References

Books

• Larousse Gastronomique, by Prosper Montagne (Ed.), Clarkson Potter, 2001. ISBN 0-609-60971-8
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.
• Template:Harvard reference.

Notes

1. French "Code rural" law L654-27-1: "On entend par foie gras, le foie d'un canard ou d'une oie spécialement engraissé par gavage." ("By "foie gras" one is to understand the liver of a duck or a goose that has been specially fattened by force feeding").
2. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4304118.stm
3. http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scah/out17_en.pdf p.37: Whilst studies of the anatomy of ducks and geese kept for foie gras production have been carried out, the amount of evidence in the scientific literature concerning the effects of force feeding and liver hypertrophy on injury level, on the functioning of the various biological systems is small.
4. http://ec.europa.eu/food/fs/sc/scah/out17_en.pdf p.38: the adrenal reactivity data obtained from tests carried out at the end of the force feeding period did not show any difference and no statistically significant modification of any of the other measures was obtained between the prior fattening period and the force feeding period. This measure, therefore gives no evidence that intensive force feeding is stressful to the male hybrid duck.
5. (McGee 2004, p. 167) harv error: no target: CITEREFMcGee2004 (help).
6. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 425) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
7. (Ginor 1999, p. 2) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
8. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 425) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
9. "Living With the Animals", Joseph J.. Hobbs, Saudi Aramco World July/August 2001, pp. 14-21.
10. (Alford 2001, p. 36) harv error: no target: CITEREFAlford2001 (help).
11. (Ginor 1999, p. 3) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
12. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 425) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
13. http://saveur.com/article.jsp?ID=5033&typeID=100
14. (Ginor 1999, p. 4) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
15. (Giacosa 1994, p. 13) harv error: no target: CITEREFGiacosa1994 (help).
16. (Câmara 1972, p. 178) harv error: no target: CITEREFCâmara1972 (help).
17. (Giacosa 1994, p. 8) harv error: no target: CITEREFGiacosa1994 (help).
18. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 426) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
19. (Ginor 1999, p. 5) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
20. (Alford 2001, p. 36) harv error: no target: CITEREFAlford2001 (help).
21. (Giacosa 1994, p. 13) harv error: no target: CITEREFGiacosa1994 (help).
22. (Câmara 1972, p. 178) harv error: no target: CITEREFCâmara1972 (help).
23. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 426) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
24. (Ginor 1999, p. 8) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
25. (Davidson 1999, p. 311) harv error: no target: CITEREFDavidson1999 (help).
26. (Ginor 1999, p. 9) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
27. (Ginor 1999, p. 9) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
28. (Alford 2001, p. 36) harv error: no target: CITEREFAlford2001 (help).
29. (Ginor 1999, p. 9) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
30. (Alford 2001, p. 37) harv error: no target: CITEREFAlford2001 (help).
31. (Ginor 1999, p. 9) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
32. (Ginor 1999, p. 11) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
33. (Ginor 1999, p. 11) harv error: no target: CITEREFGinor1999 (help).
34. (Toussaint-Samat 1994, p. 427) harv error: no target: CITEREFToussaint-Samat1994 (help).
35. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/11/content_4409586.htm
36. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/11/content_4409586.htm
37. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/11/content_4409586.htm
38. http://www.starchefs.com/features/food_debates/foie_gras/index.shtml
39. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/11/content_4409586.htm
40. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-04/11/content_4409586.htm
41. http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/855/2006/04/11/501@75992.htm
42. http://www.cee-foodindustry.com/news/ng.asp?id=49055-hungary-facing-foie
43. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3346185.stm
44. http://en.chinabroadcast.cn/855/2006/04/11/501@75992.htm
45. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-2120472,00.html Purists take a jaundiced view of Chinese foie gras.
46. Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese, section 4
47. http://www.tours.inra.fr/sra/internet/images/equipes/comportement/foiefras/Diapositive4.jpg
48. Guemene D, et al., “Force-feeding procedure and physiological indicators of stress in male mule ducks,” Br Poult Sci. 2001 Dec; 42(5):650–7, p.651.
49. http://www.goveg.com/feat/foie/
50. http://www.nofoiegras.org/
51. http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/video.asp?video=foie_gras_USA&Player=wm&speed=_med
52. http://www.avma.org/onlnews/javma/sep05/050901q.asp
53. Council of Europe 1999 recommendation (binding text): "1. Countries allowing foie gras production shall encourage research on its welfare aspects and on alternative methods which do not include gavage. 2. Until new scientific evidence on alternative methods and their welfare aspects is available, the production of foie gras shall be carried out only where it is current practice and then only in accordance with standards laid down in domestic law. (...)"
54. http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/ChercheSig.asp?NT=087&CM=1&DF=&CL=ENG
55. European Convention for the Protection of Animals kept for Farming Purposes, Article 9
56. Template:De icon German law, §10 prohibiting gavage
57. http://www.mensvogue.com/food/articles/2006/08/21/foie_gras?currentPage=1
58. http://www.stopforcefeeding.com/page.php?module=article&article_id=26
59. http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/calawquery?codesection=hsc&codebody=25980&hits=20
60. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/27/us/27foiegras.html
61. http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/23/news/liver.php
62. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14472971/
63. "The search for foie gras proves foggy", Chicago Tribune, September 21, 2006
64. "Let 'em eat foie gras, they declare", Chicago Tribune, December 21, 2006
65. "Let 'em eat foie gras, they declare", Chicago Tribune, December 21, 2006
66. Ave - alimentacion forzada - prohibicion, law RS 413/03, 20 August 2003: "Que de acuerdo a lo expresado en el artículo 1° de la Ley N° 14.346, la alimentación forzada debe incluirse como malos tratos o acto de crueldad a los animales, en este caso gansos y patos." ("That in compliance to the article n.1 of the law n.14.346, force feeding must be considered mistreatment or an act of cruelty to animals, in this case to geese or ducks.")
67. http://www.chai-online.org/en/compassion/foiegras/foiegras.pdf
68. http://www.chai-online.org/en/compassion/foiegras/food_foiegras.htm

External links

• What is Foie Gras?
• About the controversy on gavage:
  • Campaigns against force-feeding
    • GourmetCruelty.com: The Truth about Foie Gras (from a point of view that gavage is cruel to animals)
    • Stopgavage Manifesto for the abolition of force-feeding (French site with pages in English)
    • Stop Force-Feeding Animal Protection and Rescue League / In Defense of Animals Campaign
    • Foie Gras: Delicacy of Despair PETA sponsored page
    • No Foie Gras A Farm Sanctuary Campaign (includes video)
    • Force-Fed Abuse from The Humane Society of the United States
  • News reports
    • Controversy in NY state surrounding Hudson Valley Foie Gras, the largest U.S. producer.
    • Fox News story about California's anti-foie gras law
    • Article regarding foie gras controversy in Chicago and local government attempts to stop sales of the delicacy in city restaurants
    • Buzzle.com report on Israeli ruling
    • A UK Independent article about the controversy
    • NPR: France Questions the Foie Gras Tradition
    • Men's Vogue: "Stuffed Animals" by Jeffrey Steingarten
    • Chicago's Foie Gras Faux Pas at Legal News TV
  • Op-ed
    • The Controversy Over Foie Gras - Does a Duck have a Soul? How foie gras became the new fur.
  • Scientific Studies
    • Report of the EU Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese
  • First person
    • An American food and wine blogger goes inside the gavage shed at a foie gras farm in the Dordogne (Perigord), with pictures
    • An American chef interns on a foie gras farm
• About preparation:
  • A cookbook review of Foie Gras... a Passion
  • Foie Gras FAQ: The Liver Everyone Loves
  • Template:Fr icon Decree 93-999 of August 9, 1993 defining legal categories and terms for foie gras in France

• French cuisine
• Offal
• Poultry
• Spreads
• Animal rights