Foie Gras:- 'Posh or just unsavory?'
I dont know why, but I always associated Foie Gras with something posh, as if it was some posh elaborate fancy meal. I cant say I ever tried or every will try in my lifetime, but what I found was there is actually nothing posh about Foie Gras afterall. The translation of this term actually means 'fat liver'. It preludes to force feeding the animal that you are just about to eat.
The industry will tell you that Foie gras is a popular and well-known delicacy in French cuisine. Its flavor is described as rich, buttery, and delicate, unlike that of an ordinary duck or goose liver http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foie_gras but if you dig deeper you will find the following facts.
Foie gras is made from the grotesquely enlarged livers of ducks and geese who have been cruelly force-fed. Although France is the primary producer (and consumer) of this so-called “delicacy”—France produces more than 20,000 tons of foie gras each year—inhumane force-feeding takes place on factory farms in the U.S. too.(1) Three U.S. duck farms (two in New York and one in California) produce 400 tons of foie gras each year.(2,3)
Although foie gras has historically come from force-fed geese, most foie gras farms now raise ducks—mule, Muscovy, and genetically manipulated, sterile birds called “moulards.”(4,5) Farmers have found that they can sell more than just the ducks’ fattened livers: Ducks’ legs, breasts, fat, and skin are all marketed for (mostly French) specialty foods. The bodies of geese, however, age too quickly to be used for some of these foods.(6) Today, in France, only 4 percent of foie gras comes from geese.(7) It is common, however, for geese to be raised for their down as well as for foie gras; birds with white feathers are preferred for this purpose.
Force-Feeding
Birds raised for foie gras spend the first four weeks of their lives eating and growing, sometimes in semi-darkness. For the next four weeks, they are confined to cages and fed a high-protein, high-starch diet that is designed to promote rapid growth. Force-feeding begins when the birds are between 8 and 10 weeks old. For 12 to 21 days, ducks and geese are subjected to gavage—every day, up to 4 pounds of grain and fat are forced down the birds’ throats by means of an auger in a feeding tube.(9,10) The Washington Post reported that the tube “is pushed 5 inches down their throats, and more food than they want is gunned into their stomachs. If the mushy corn sticks … a stick is sometimes used to force it down.”(11) The birds’ livers, which become engorged from a carbohydrate-rich diet, can grow to be more than 10 times their normal size (a disease called “hepatic steatosis”).(12) The mortality rate of birds raised for foie gras has been found to be as much as 20 times higher than that of birds raised normally, and carcasses show wing fractures and severe tissue damage to the throat muscles.(13)
Birds raised for foie gras spend the first four weeks of their lives eating and growing, sometimes in semi-darkness. For the next four weeks, they are confined to cages and fed a high-protein, high-starch diet that is designed to promote rapid growth. Force-feeding begins when the birds are between 8 and 10 weeks old. For 12 to 21 days, ducks and geese are subjected to gavage—every day, up to 4 pounds of grain and fat are forced down the birds’ throats by means of an auger in a feeding tube.(9,10) The Washington Post reported that the tube “is pushed 5 inches down their throats, and more food than they want is gunned into their stomachs. If the mushy corn sticks … a stick is sometimes used to force it down.”(11) The birds’ livers, which become engorged from a carbohydrate-rich diet, can grow to be more than 10 times their normal size (a disease called “hepatic steatosis”).(12) The mortality rate of birds raised for foie gras has been found to be as much as 20 times higher than that of birds raised normally, and carcasses show wing fractures and severe tissue damage to the throat muscles.(13)
Investigations Reveal Additional Cruelty
A PETA investigation at Hudson Valley Foie Gras (then known as Commonwealth Enterprises), a production facility in New York, revealed that workers were expected to force-feed 500 birds three times a day. A worker told one of PETA’s investigators that he could feel tumor-like lumps, caused by force-feeding, in some ducks’ throats. One duck had a maggot-covered neck wound that was so severe that water spilled out of it when he drank. Workers routinely carried ducks by their necks, causing them to choke and defecate in distress.
A PETA investigation at Hudson Valley Foie Gras (then known as Commonwealth Enterprises), a production facility in New York, revealed that workers were expected to force-feed 500 birds three times a day. A worker told one of PETA’s investigators that he could feel tumor-like lumps, caused by force-feeding, in some ducks’ throats. One duck had a maggot-covered neck wound that was so severe that water spilled out of it when he drank. Workers routinely carried ducks by their necks, causing them to choke and defecate in distress.
One veterinarian who accompanied the police on their raid of Commonwealth noted, “Many of the ducks … were lame or unable to walk without using their wings for support. Some ducks moved by pushing their bodies along the floor.” The same veterinarian said, “All of the birds in the force-feeding area had dirty, ragged, incomplete plumage, yet none were attempting to preen. Only severely stressed or ill ducks allow their plumage to deteriorate to [such a] degree. … Normal ducks keep their feathers in near-perfect condition.”(14)
A New York state wildlife pathologist who examined ducks from Commonwealth expressed horror at the birds’ “greatly enlarged livers, the product of overfeeding by force (livers are easily torn by even minor trauma)” and at one duck’s “laceration of the liver with hemorrhage into the body cavity.” He went on to say, “This type of treatment and farming of waterfowl is outside the acceptable norms of agriculture and sane treatment of animals.”(15) He later told PETA, “If this kind of thing [were] happening to dogs, it would be stopped immediately.”(16)
A New York Times reporter who visited Sonoma Foie Gras in California found that young ducks had their beaks clipped and that birds “were so fat [that] they moved little and panted.” The reporter also noted that at the age of 12 to 15 weeks, birds were confined to dark sheds that had “standing water … deep enough to suggest a drainage problem.”(17) Visitwww.gourmetcruelty.com and www.stopforcefeeding.com to view video footage and learn more about this investigation.
Domestic Ducks and Geese
Domestic ducks and geese usually enjoy being hand-fed by humans; however, according to one study, birds subjected to force-feeding “kept away from the person who would force-feed them … the birds were less well able to move and were usually panting but they still moved away.”(18) Even ducks confined to cages “moved their heads away from the person who was about to force feed them.”(19) Ducks also like to forage, swim, and raise their young, none of which can they do on foie gras farms.
Domestic ducks and geese usually enjoy being hand-fed by humans; however, according to one study, birds subjected to force-feeding “kept away from the person who would force-feed them … the birds were less well able to move and were usually panting but they still moved away.”(18) Even ducks confined to cages “moved their heads away from the person who was about to force feed them.”(19) Ducks also like to forage, swim, and raise their young, none of which can they do on foie gras farms.
Geese are social animals who establish hierarchies in their flocks and love to forage. They tend to be monogamous, and both parents care for their young. One breeder says that “geese tend to vary more from one individual to another in terms of personality traits than any other form of domestic poultry.”(20) Because most birds raised for foie gras are kept in cages or in very small groups, their social or normal grooming activities are limited or impossible.
High in Fat, High in Cholesterol
Foie gras is unhealthy for humans. It derives 85 percent of its calories from fat: A 2-ounce serving contains 25 grams of fat and 85 milligrams of cholesterol.(21)
Foie gras is unhealthy for humans. It derives 85 percent of its calories from fat: A 2-ounce serving contains 25 grams of fat and 85 milligrams of cholesterol.(21)
Foie Gras Bans
The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that foie gras production violates the country’s cruelty-to-animals laws, and the practice is now banned in Israel.(22) Germany and other European nations have prohibited the production of foie gras, and force-feeding birds is prohibited in the U.K. and in Switzerland, where foie gras packages are required to carry labels to inform consumers that the birds were force-fed.(23,24) The European Union is working to phase out the force-feeding of birds entirely in its member countries by 2020.(25)
The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that foie gras production violates the country’s cruelty-to-animals laws, and the practice is now banned in Israel.(22) Germany and other European nations have prohibited the production of foie gras, and force-feeding birds is prohibited in the U.K. and in Switzerland, where foie gras packages are required to carry labels to inform consumers that the birds were force-fed.(23,24) The European Union is working to phase out the force-feeding of birds entirely in its member countries by 2020.(25)
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill into law that will ban the production and sale of foie gras from force-fed birds in that state starting in 2012.(26) Whole Foods Market does not allow the sale of foie gras in any of its stores in the U.S. and the U.K.(27)
What You Can Do
Urge restaurants and stores that sell foie gras to stop doing so and to sell vegetarian pâté instead; vegetarian brands, such as Bonavita, are often sold alongside liver pâtés in grocery stores. Organize demonstrations at restaurants and stores that sell foie gras. Contact PETA for a foie gras action pack and for information on how you can support legislation to prohibit force-feeding.
Urge restaurants and stores that sell foie gras to stop doing so and to sell vegetarian pâté instead; vegetarian brands, such as Bonavita, are often sold alongside liver pâtés in grocery stores. Organize demonstrations at restaurants and stores that sell foie gras. Contact PETA for a foie gras action pack and for information on how you can support legislation to prohibit force-feeding.
Get to know the duck..
Species: Various
Weight: 8 lbs
Lifespan: 2-20 years
Diet: Grasses, aquatic plans, fish, insects, small amphibians, worms and small molluscs
Habitat: Fresh water and sea water
Gestation Period: 30 days
Number of Offspring: 15 eggs
Interesting & Amazing Information On Ducks
- Ducks are related to geese and swans, but unlike their cousins, ducks have shorter necks and wings and a stout body.
- Did you know that a duck never walks but waddles? Ducks are born with webbed feet that act as paddles, which assist them to swim fast.
- Ever wondered how a duck can swim in icy cold water, even when the weather is freezing? Ducks have no nerves or blood vessels in their feet. Hence, they never feel hot or cold.
- Another interesting fact about ducks is that they have waterproof feathers. These birds have special glands called ‘Preen Glands’ around their tail that protects their outer covers from getting drenched. The inner part of this wing is stuffed with soft fluffy feathers that help them to stay warm.
- Ducks usually use their beaks to keep themselves clean. They often use their beak to preen themselves. They also use feathers plucked from their chest to line their nests.
- Ducks were once wild until they were domesticated by the Chinese many hundreds of years ago.
- You will be surprised to know that ducks have three eyelids. The bird also boasts of having a keen vision.
- Ducks are very adjustable and can stay in all weather conditions, a trait that explains their copious presence all over the globe.
- Another most interesting fact about duck is that they sleep with half their brains awake. Ducks sleep with one eye open when they are located on the edge of sleeping groups. Ducks have an extremely special ability to detect predators in less than a second.
- Duck eggs have tiny pores that help draw in respiratory gas as well as water vapor to assist breathing.
- Baby ducks are born with their eyes open and a warm coat and do not rely entirely on their parents for food. In fact ducklings are ready to leave the nest within hours of hatching.
- A duck lays more eggs in daylight. In the months of July to December when daylight is short, they slow down their production of eggs. Sometimes, ducks stop laying eggs completely during these months.
http://lifestyle.iloveindia.com/lounge/facts-about-ducks-8610.html
Maybe next time, just order something else....
Maybe next time, just order something else....
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