Duck, Duck, Goose: ALDF Takes on Foie Gras
Foie gras is a cruelly-produced, high-priced “gourmet” delicacy that comes from force-feeding young ducks (or geese) until their livers swell to eight or more times their natural size. Foie gras (French for “fat liver”) is the diseased liver of an animal who has suffered enormously. That’s why California’s 2004 ban (which went into effect in 2012) on the production and sale of foie gras was a momentous step forward. But on January 7, 2015, a U.S. District Court overturned California’s ban, treating animals as “goods in commerce” rather than as living, sentient beings. That misguided decision flies in the face of state law, voter desires, and ALDF’s legal victories against the foie gras industry. On February 4, Attorney General Kamala Harris appealed this recent ruling, and ALDF expects the ban will be reinstated.