Israel is  Foie Gras Free But For How Long?
 

Foie gras is an expensive gourmet delicacy made from goose or duck liver

The liver on the left is a normal size goose liver, the other is result of force feeding for foie gras

Israel, the world's fourth biggest supplier of foie gras, has enforced a ban on the force-feeding of geese and ducks, despite a delaying tactic by its Ministry of Agriculture who are trying to save the industry from closure.

The ban, the result of a campaign led by Anonymous for Animal Rights (AAR), with support from the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), comes two years after the Supreme Court in Israel ruled that the production of foie gras causes unacceptable suffering and is therefore in violation of the law. Enforcement of the judge's ruling - a landmark decision for animal welfare - was deferred until  April 2005 amid fears an immediate ban would cause job losses in the recession-hit Israeli economy.

(c) AAR Crammed into cages

Israel's Ministry of Agriculture now hopes to save the foie gras industry from closure by sponsoring an experiment aimed at developing a more 'humane' method of production that would not contravene the animal protection law.  The method being tested aims to produce foie gras by exploiting loopholes in the wording of the law.  For example, using a flexible tube instead of a metal tube to force-feed geese and ducks.  Requests by the Ministry for the ban to be delayed until 2006 were finally rejected, with force-feeding banned from the start of April 2005. 

Leah Garcés, WSPA's Campaigns Director, said, "This is fantastic news and we hope that other countries will follow Israel's example and make the force-feeding of animals illegal. However, as long as people continue to eat foie gras, the suffering of these animals will continue and producers will seek to find ways to exploit loopholes in the law."

A six-year campaign by animal welfare groups, including AAR, WSPA and Noah (The Israeli Association of Animal Protection Organizations), was responsible for changing the opinion of the Israeli public to a point where foie gras is now perceived as a morally defective food.

Goose being taken for slaughter (c) AAR

Foie gras involves force-feeding ducks or geese several times every day, greatly exceeding the quantity that the birds would normally eat. A metal tube is inserted into the birds' throats through which food is compressed into their stomachs. The process causes the birds' livers to enlarge by up to 10 times the normal size and often results in degenerative disease.  Israel produces about 300 tonnes of foie gras a year. France is the main producer, followed by Hungary and Bulgaria.