Foie gras

[dukeis84]

Has anyone raised ducks for foie gras? I know it's a sticky subject but I'm curious what peoples experience has been with it.

 

[Jpat]

Hey there, as with any animals used for meat there are cruel ways and respectable ways to do it

You might get better answers in the Meat Bird section of these forums here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forums/meat-birds-etc.21/

Goodluck

 

[dukeis84]

Has anyone raised ducks for foie gras? I know it can be a sticky subject but I'm curious to anyone's experience doing it. Thanks!

 

[gtaus]

Has anyone raised ducks for foie gras? I know it can be a sticky subject but I'm curious to anyone's experience doing it. Thanks!

I lived in France for a short while. Foie gras is legal there, as part of their culture. I thought foie gras, or rather forced feeding of ducks and geese, was not allowed by law in the US., at least in some states. But I'm not passing judgement on the process or the food itself.

Anyway, here is a YouTube with Anthony Bourdain about Foie Gras which you might find relevant:

 

[johntfs]

Has anyone raised ducks for foie gras? I know it's a sticky subject but I'm curious what peoples experience has been with it.

No personal experience, but I've done quite a bit of reading. Here's a Wikipedia article about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foie_gras#Physiological_basis

Making "ethical" fois gras seems to be rare and difficult. Making it the standard way involves basically torturing your animals before killing them.

 

[blackandtan]

I don’t see why ducks raised for meat couldn’t also have their liver used for fois gras, I’m not sure how many people are conisseur enough to tell the difference between the liver of a happier duck vs one that was horribly raised once it’s made into pate or terrine. I’m all about using everything your animal gave you, so I say go for it - and please post the results!

 

[Miss Lydia]

No personal experience, but I've done quite a bit of reading. Here's a Wikipedia article about it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foie_gras#Physiological_basis

Making "ethical" fois gras seems to be rare and difficult. Making it the standard way involves basically torturing your animals before killing them.

I think that is awful any one would even consider it. If you want chicken duck goose liver? humanely butcher then don't torture them to death.

 

[Mosey2003]

My question would be, can you make proper foie gras from regular livers, or *must* they be force-fed (gavage is it called?) in order to make the livers fattier?

If the former, I don't see why not, as long as you like eating duck. If the latter, that falls into animal cruelty in my world view.

 

[Jpat]

I think that is awful any one would even consider it. If you want chicken duck goose liver? humanely butcher then don't torture them to death.

exactly. the point of torturing is to speed the growth and over size the liver. as responsible animal owner it shouldnt be a problem to wait and deal with normal growth

 

[blackandtan]

#humanssuck
Human cruelty knows no bounds! I’ve read in other places that for easier handling the poor duckies feet are stapled to the floor. And really, for what? Wish we could invite someone like Gordon Ramsey to weigh in on this issue, I respect him not only as a famous chef but he is a strong advocate of backyard and sustainable/ethical food production