Controversial Foie Gras Resolution Sets Up Food Fight

A resolution passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Tuesday
commends restaurants that voluntarily remove foie gras
from their menus ahead of California statewide ban in 2012.

By Fanny Dassie

March 26, 2009

While animal rights defenders will cheer, some gourmet chefs will be banging their pots and pans in disapproval following the adoption of a resolution Tuesday by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors that encourages restaurants to voluntarily remove foie gras from their menus.

Resolution sponsor Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi acknowledged he is ahead of the curve since foie gras will be soon be outlawed in California, but said his resolution is symbolically consistent with San Francisco’s opposition to the inhumane treatment of all animals.

In September 2004, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that will ban the production and sale of foie gras, or “fat liver,” beginning in 2012, making California the first state to outlaw the controversial delicacy.

Foie gras is made by force-feeding and fattening geese and ducks to maximize the size of the their livers before slaughter, a practice animal rights activists have long criticized for the suffering and cruelty endured by animals.

A worker force-feeds a Moulard duck at a California foie gras farm.
Photo by Eric Risberg/AP

The Humane Society, a US watchdog group that confronts cruelty and mistreatment of animals, rallied behind Mirkarimi’s resolution.

“The Humane Society of the United States commends [Mirkarimi’s] resolution,” said Humane Society director Paul Shapiro, citing detrimental effects on animal welfare during the production of foie gras.

“Most people wouldn’t want to eat any part of a diseased animal, but in the case of foie gras, it’s the diseased organ itself on which consumers dine,” he said.

Many politically conscious restaurants in San Francisco are leading the way and have already removed foie gras from their menus.

In March 2007, chef Wolfgang Puck promoted a new food politics philosophy. Dubbed “Wolfgang’s Eating, Loving and Living,” Puck intends to raise awareness and culinary standards by removing foie gras from his menus.

“Using fresh, seasonal, organic produce and naturally-raised animals enhances and sustains the quality of life, and that is what ‘Wolfgang’s Eating, Loving, and Living is all about,’” Puck stated. “We want a better standard for living creatures. It’s as simple as that.”

San Francisco restaurant Postrio, in partnership with Wolfgang Puck, offers chicken liver mousse from free-range chicken as a replacement to foie gras. Stephanie Davis, director of brand communications for the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, said chicken mouse liver is just as tasty as foie gras.

“We have not received any [customer] complaints. Quite the contrary,” Davis said. “We have found that many people support our cause and are concerned about the food they put into their bodies.”

Considered a delicacy in France, which is the largest producer and consumer of foie gras, the banning of foie gras in California is fueling a fierce food fight between French restaurateurs and animal rights activists.

Marcus Garcia is the restaurant manager and sommelier of Fleur De Lys, a highly acclaimed French restaurant that serves filet mignon topped with sautéed foie gras. He said the restaurant has been serving foie gras for “a very long time” and customers expect to see it on the menu.

Though customer appetites for foie gras will soon be dissatisfied, Clementine, a French restaurant located in the Inner Richmond, plans to keep serving foie gras until it is officially banned, said Philippe Gardelle, the restaurant’s owner and chef.

Though Gardelle acknowledged ducks and geese do suffer during the forced-fed production of foie gras, he said the mass-production of chicken is a much larger issue that needs to be addressed.

“You should see the chickens at Safeway,” he said. “They are looking so bad, they don’t even have bones. [Supervisors] should do a cause for chickens instead.”

Mayor Gavin Newsom, who is part-owner of restaurant chain PlumpJack which serves foie gras to its customers, would not comment on his support for a foie gras ban in restaurants.

“It’s a moot point,” Newsom spokesperson Nathan Ballard told FCJ, referring to the statewide ban in 2012.

Luke Thomas contributed to this report.

Fanny Dassie

Bio Fanny Dassie is a native of France who moved to the United States to pursue her studies in the field of media and communication. A 2008 graduate from San Francisco State University and a lover of the media environment, she has contributed to publications like the Oakland Tribune, the San Mateo County Times and InsideBayArea.com. Among her other passions are speaking English and Spanish, swimming and traveling.

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