Foie Gras cruelty brought straight to you plate

Have you ever ordered Foie Gras at a restaurant or maybe they gave you a complimentary piece?  It’s funny how we eat things with funny names and never take the time to find out exactly what they are, where they came from or how they came to be.  If you are one of these types then I urge you to read on and take a minute to consider where Foie Gras comes from.  You may never eat it again once you find out what these unfortunate animals have to endure to bring this to your dinner plate.

Foie Gras is a popular delicacy in French cuisine and is the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened by a technique called gavage, which means “to gorge”.   Gavage, or force feeding takes place 12-18 days before the slaughter.  The duck or goose is typically fed a controlled amount of corn mash through a tube inserted in the animal’s cuticle-lined esophagus.  See the picture below.

Can you imagine the pain and suffering the animal must go through for the last days of it's life?  If you have been in hospital and had a camera inserted down you throat or maybe had your stomach pumped then you may begin to understand what they go through.  Just imagine 12-18 days worth of that and then you be getting close.

France is the largest producer and consumer of Foie Gras though it is produced and consumed worldwide, particularly in other European, the United States and China .   A number of countries have laws against force-feeding or the sale of Foie Gras.  Although we aren't allowed to produce it in this country we are allowed to bring it over from France and serve it in our restaurants.

The Foie Gras flavour is described as rich, buttery and delicate.  I, myself have not tried it, I couldn't bring myself to but one of my friends did and her description was that it tasted like lard.  I can understand her description because Foie Gras translates into English as Fat Liver.  So not only is it not good for the duck or goose, it's also not very good for you due to the high fat content.

Unfortunately, there is only one way to stop this from being served in our restaurants and that is to make a fuss about it.  Ask your favourite restaurants to take it off the menu and, if they don't, well, find another restaurant to eat at.  We have plenty of tasty things to eat without adding cruelty to our diet.