Foie gras is a product that is legal to produce and sell, thanks to the overseeing USDA. They approve the food for legal sale, and they are a federal institution. I was under the impression that city laws don’t get to contradict federal laws [“When Activists Attack” by Mick Dumke, June 22]. Even more foolish is that a banned-city restaurant owner can purchase foie gras legally from another city, but can’t sell it back (although it can be legally given away for free).
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First off, we’ll tackle the easy matter of them being kept in cages as being “cruel.” Well, the facts tell us that for the first 12-14 weeks, the ducks and geese are neither force-fed nor are they in cages at all; wandering around in grassy areas. It’s only the last 2-4 weeks that they are put in a cage–which is only done for the feedings–and then are allowed to go back out and roam as free as either the wind blows or the grass grows.
(1) Not like it. (Sadomasochism aside, you would not enjoy feeling pain or trauma.)
Enter the evidence.
(4) Ducks and geese naturally overfeed themselves! Geese will spontaneously overeat grass and carrots by themselves at levels of over 3 kilograms a day if left to their own devices. Ducks are not as large, but still undergo spontaneous hyperphagia (overeating) and can consume up to 750 grams when they do so. These are (not surprisingly) about the levels of overfeeding that the farmers force-feed them. So they’re feeding them what they’d normally be eating when they overeat–they’re just making sure that they do it.
Bridgeport
