October
2003
Vegetarian
Advocate: Israel Bans the Production of Foie Gras. Is America
Next?
By Jack Rosenberger
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Ahhh, the taste of victory! For a decade, animal advocates
in Israel fought to ban the production of pâté de foie
gras in their country. On August 11th, they triumphed. That day, the
Israeli Supreme Court outlawed the force-feeding of geese and ducks
to produce foie gras. Israeli law prohibits unnecessary cruelty to
animals,
including farmed animals. The Supreme Court ruled that the current
method of producing foie gras is cruel and that the Health Ministry
regulations
allowing foie gras production are illegal.
“The process, in which a metal tube is inserted into the goose’s
throat, through which food is compressed into his stomach, is violent
and harmful,” wrote one judge in the court’s ruling. “The
process causes a degenerative disease of the goose liver, and its enlargement
up to 10 times its original size.”
The Supreme Court’s landmark ruling is particularly significant
as Israel is the world’s third largest producer of foie gras.
It now joins Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Norway, and Poland
as one of the enlightened countries that have outlawed the production
of foie gras within its borders.
As one Israeli activist quipped after the Supreme Court decision, “I’m
sure the geese thank us from the depths of their liver.”
The Supreme Court ruling does not take effect until March 2005. Foie
gras production is a $25 million industry in Israel. About 10 percent
of the country’s workforce is unemployed, and the court delayed
the implementation of its ruling until early 2005 to ease the burden
on the 600 farmers and workers who are slated to lose their foie gras-related
jobs.
The Supreme Court’s decision bans the current method of force-feeding,
but includes language allowing the production of foie gras using other
methods that will “significantly reduce suffering.” Some
Israeli activists are concerned the foie gras industry will try to circumvent
the court’s ruling by devising an alternative method of less harmful
feeding. No such method, however, currently exists, and as Andre Menache,
a Jerusalem-based veterinary surgeon and a leader in the anti-foie gras
campaign, has noted, “Any method that achieves the aim of swelling
the liver is going to entail cruelty.”
The Israeli campaign to ban foie gras production involved numerous animal
protection groups operating under an umbrella organization, NOAH, which
worked through the courts and the Israeli Parliament, and influenced
public opinion against foie gras through numerous ad campaigns, some
of which involved the use of graphic photos.
Foie Gras in America
Could America be the next country to outlaw foie gras production? I’d
like to think so. The Israeli ban succeeded primarily for two reasons:
1) a coalition of animal protection groups worked together and waged
a sustained, hard-hitting national campaign; and 2) Israeli animal
cruelty
laws include farmed animals.
The foie gras industry in America is particularly vulnerable as it
involves only two companies: Hudson Valley Foie Gras in Ferndale, New
York, and
Sonoma Foie Gras in Sonoma, California. Given that foie gras is the
culinary equivalent of a fur coat, when educated, most carnivores—even
the ones who like to eat Chicken McNuggets at least once a week—find
it difficult to condone the animal cruelty inherent to foie gras.
One of the societal advantages of a national campaign to ban the production
of foie gras is it will heighten the awareness of people, particularly
young people, about what happens to all farmed animals before they
are
turned into bacon, burgers, and Chicken McNuggets. It’s a win-win
situation.
Sonoma Foie Gras recently made the front page of the New York Times’ Dining
Out section as California animal advocates have targeted the company;
Sonoma Saveurs, a Sonoma restaurant that serves foie gras and
has connections with Sonoma Foie Gras; and the homes of two Sonoma
Saveurs co-owners. Activists also liberated several ducks from the
Sonoma Foie
Gras facility and distributed a videotape about alleged animal abuse
at Sonoma Foie Gras to San Francisco-area television stations.
The controversy is taking a predictable toll on the Sonoma Foie Gras
owners, Guillermo and Junny Gonzalez, a married couple. In an interview
with the New York Times, Guillermo Gonzalez said, “Who
knows why God is putting us through this.” Perhaps Mr. Gonzalez
is befuddled or in denial. God herself doesn’t seem to be playing
a role in this little drama. There is no doubt, however, about the
involvement
of Gonzalez himself, and if he wants his present troubles to disappear,
he should embark on a mid-life career move.
As for the unappetizing happenings at Hudson Valley Foie Gras, see my
previous “Vegetarian Advocate” column
of May 2000 on the subject.
Contact: Earlier this year, New York State Assemblyman John J. McEneny
introduced an amendment, A01821, that would outlaw the force-feeding
of poultry for foie gras in the Empire State. Given that one of the
largest foie gras producers is in New York, it’s a natural place
to start. Please contact him with your support at (518) 455-4178 or
mcenenj@ assembly.state.ny.us, and urge your local assemblyperson to
support this amendment as well (for contact information, visit http://assembly.state.ny.us).
As of yet, there is no national coalition to ban foie gras in the U.S.
Please call or write American vegetarian and animal advocacy groups
and urge them to join forces to ban foie gras production. If the Israelis
can do it in the current firestorm of violence, we can do it here.
Also, speak out against the cruelty involved in making foie gras, particularly
to the people who are responsible for its production, distribution,
and sale. Michael Ginor, co-owner and founder, Hudson Valley Foie Gras,
80 Brooks Rd., Ferndale, NY 12734; (845) 292-2500; and info@hudsonvalleyfoiegras.com.
Guillermo and Junny Gonzalez, Sonoma Foie Gras, Box 2007, Sonoma, CA
95476; (800) 427-4559 or (707) 938-1229; and www.sonomafoiegras.com/product.
A New, Favorite Bumper Sticker
“If we aren’t supposed to eat humans, then why are they
made of meat?”
