On Friday, the Humane Society of the United States refiled and expanded its lawsuit seeking to block foie gras production in New York, the nation's largest foie-gras supplying state. The action comes in response to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finding that foie gras consumption may trigger the development of a serious disease that can cause a multitude of human health problems, including extensive organ damage, kidney failure, and even death.
"This new study finds that foie gras consumption may increase the risk of developing amyloidosis in susceptible people, which is difficult to treat and often fatal," stated Michael Greger, MD, Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture for The HSUS. "Foie gras is produced by inducing a state of disease in ducks and geese by force-feeding, and the study notes that the potentially harmful 'pathological alteration is noticeably increased in birds subjected to stressful environmental conditions as well as to the forced feeding that is used to produce foie gras.'"
The amended lawsuit, filed in the Supreme Court in Albany County, seeks to force the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets to declare foie gras an adulterated food product under a state food safety law requiring that any food that is "the product of a diseased animal" be deemed adulterated. The suit cites extensive expert evidence that the poultry livers used to make foie gras are diseased, and that the birds become seriously ill in the production process. It is supported by more than 800 pages of supporting evidence, as well as statements from leading avian veterinarians in the United States and one of New York's own state wildlife pathologists.
The amended suit alleges that the new study identifies a potential human health risk associated with foie gras consumption, and demonstrates the need for prompt action to remove this inhumane and diseased product from the market.
Facts
- Foie gras is the diseased, fattened liver of factory-farmed ducks. To produce foie gras, producers force-feed ducks an unnatural amount of food through a pipe thrust down their throats until their livers expand to ten or more times their natural size. This force-feeding can cause painful bruising, lacerations, sores, organ rupture, and even death.
- Chicago, California and more than a dozen countries—including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Israel, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland—have taken legislative action on the issue of foie gras and cruel force-feeding practices. Even the Pope has condemned it.
- A 2004 Zogby poll showed that 80 percent of Americans believe the practice of force-feeding ducks and geese for foie gras should be banned.
Timeline
For more information, visit The HSUS' website (http://www.hsus.org/farm/camp/ffa/foie_gras.html) on foie gras production.
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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization—backed by 10 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty—on the web at humanesociety.org.
