Published Letters and Op-Eds from
COK’s Writers Group

Fie on Foie Gras

Baltimore City Paper
March 5, 2008

Henry Hong fails to mention that many experts from around the world have weighed in on the issue of force-feeding ducks and geese for foie gras—and they've concluded that it's cruel and inhumane. Here's what a few of them had to say:

A study by the European Union's Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare determined that foie gras production is "detrimental to the welfare of the birds."

A report by Belgian veterinarians reveals that "there is absolutely no doubt that force-feeding subjects them to physiological and behavioral suffering," further concluding that "force feeding constitutes a reprehensible practice from an ethical point of view."

Ian Duncan, a poultry expert from the University of Guelph, states that the "regular insertion of a feeding tube down the esophagus several times a day will inevitably lead to damage… then the painfulness of every force feeding episode will be exacerbated."

Indeed, foie gras production is so cruel that it's been banned in more than a dozen countries, as well as in California and Chicago. A growing number of restaurants everywhere, including Baltimore, are voluntarily taking it off their menus after learning about the miseries forced upon birds raised for foie gras.

Foie gras is not a delicacy—it's a disease (fatty liver disease). See for yourself by visiting GourmetCruelty.com.

Erica Meier
Executive Director, Compassion Over Killing
Takoma Park