Foie gras
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Pâté de foie gras (right) with pickled pear. |
Foie gras (
French for "fat liver") is the fattened
liver of a
duck or
goose that has been overfed. Along with
truffles, foie gras is considered one of the greatest delicacies in
French cuisine. It is very rich and
buttery, with a delicate flavor unlike regular duck or goose liver.
Some
animal rights organizations regard the production method as cruel due to the process of force-feeding and the health effects of enlarged livers. Foie gras production is illegal in several jurisdictions.
Ancient times
As far back as
2500 BC, it is possible that the Egyptians sought the fattened livers of
migratory birds as a delicacy. They soon learned that many birds could be fattened through overfeeding and began the practice of overfeeding captive geese. In the
necropolis of
Saqqara, the tomb of Mereruka, an important royal official, contains a
bas relief of a scene in which slaves grasp geese around the necks in order to push pellets down their throats. By their sides stand tables piled with more pellets, probably made from roast grain, and a flask for moistening the feed before giving it to the geese.
The practice of geese-fattening spread from Egypt to the Mediterranean. The earliest reference to fattened geese comes in
5th century BC from the Greek poet
Cratinus, who wrote of "geese-fatteners". But Egypt yet maintained its reputation as a source for fattened geese. When the
Spartan king
Agesilaus visited Egypt in
361 BC, he was greeted with "fattened geese and calves," the riches of Egyptian farmers.
However, it was not until the Roman period that foie gras was ever mentioned as a distinct food, to which Romans gave the name
iecur ficatum.
Iecur means
liver and
ficatum draws its root from
ficus, meaning
fig in
Latin.
Pliny the Elder credits the Roman gastronome
Apicius, to whom the sole surviving Roman cookbook is attributed, with feeding dried figs to geese to enlarge their livers. Hence the term
iecur ficatum, fig-stuffed liver.
Ficatum was so closely associated with animal liver that it became the root for
foie in
French,
hígado in
Spanish,
fígado in
Portuguese, and
fegato in
Italian, all meaning liver in each respective language. The idea of feeding figs to enlarge goose liver may have been derived from Hellenistic Alexandria, since much of Roman luxury cuisine owes its inspirations to the Greeks.
Postclassical Europe
After the fall of the Roman empire, goose liver temporarily vanished from European cuisine. It has been claimed that Gallic farmers had preserved the tradition of making foie gras for centuries until it was rediscovered, however this theory lacks any plausible evidence since it is known that the sources of meat for medieval French peasants were mainly pig and sheep. It is more likely that the tradition has been preserved by the
Jews who learned the method of enlarging goose liver under the Roman colonization of
Israel. The Jews carried this knowledge as they migrated to the further north and west.
Kashrut, the dietary law of Judaism, forbade them to use
lard as cooking oil, and
butter was not an alternative since it was also prohibited to mix dairy with meats. The Jews had used
olive oil in the
Mediterranean and
sesame oil in
Babylonia, but neither of them was easily available in the Western and Central Europe, so they turned to poultry fat which they could produce in abundancy through overfeeding geese. The delicate taste of its liver was soon appreciated, as it was witnessed by Hans Wilhelm Kirchhof of
Kassel who wrote in
1562 that the Jews raise fat geese and particularly love its liver. Some
Rabbis were concerned with the
kashrut complications of overfeeding geese because Jewish law prohibits the eating of an animal which cannot live for more than 12 months. The chasam sofer, Rabbi
Moses Sofer held that even though the animal might die within 12 months, it does not constitute a
treyf animal, because none of its limbs are damaged. This issue remained one of the most debated topics in Jewish dietary law until the Jewish taste for goose liver declined in the 19th century. Another kashrut issue, still problematic today, is that even properly slaughtered and inspected meat must be drained of its blood before being fit for consumption. This is usually done by salting ; however, liver being regarded as "(almost) wholly blood", the only way of kashering it is by broiling. Properly broiling a foie gras while preserving its delicate taste is a somewhat arduous endeavour in which few are willing to engage seriously.
Non-Jewish gastronomes began to appreciate the fattened goose liver which they could purchase in the Jewish
ghetto. In 1570, Bartolomeo Scappi, chef to
Pope Pius V, published his cookbook
Opera in which he tells that "the liver of domestic goose raised by the Jews is of extreme size and weighs two and three pounds." In
1581, Marx Rumpolt of
Mainz, chef to various German nobles, published the massive cookbook
Kochbuch, telling that the Jews of
Bohemia produced livers weighing over three pounds. Rumpolt gives several recipes for it, one of them being a
mousse made out of the goose liver. János Keszei, chef to the court of the prince of
Transylvania Michael Apafi, included recipes for foie gras in his
A New Book About Cooking from
1680. He instructed readers to "envelop the goose liver in a calf's thin skin, bake it and prepare green or brown sauce to accompany it. I used goose liver fattened by Bohemian Jews, its weight was more than three pounds. You may also prepare a mush of it."
France is the leading producer and consumer of foie gras. The country produced 18,450 tonnes of foie gras in
2005 (75% of estimated total world production of 23,500 tonnes) of which 96% was duck liver and the rest goose. Consumption of foie gras in France totalled 19,000 tonnes in 2005 [
1]. 30,000 people are involved in the industry with 90% residing in the Périgord (
Dordogne) and
Midi-Pyrénées régions in the southwest, as well as in the east (
Alsace). The European Union recognizes the foie gras produced according to traditional farming methods (
label rouge) in southwestern France with a geographical indication of provenance.
Hungary is the world's second-largest producer of foie gras and the largest exporter (the country exported 1,920 tonnes of goose foie gras in
2005). France is the principal market for Hungarian foie gras which is mainly exported raw. French companies spice, process or cook the foie gras so that it can be sold as a French product for the domestic market or for export [
2]. An estimated 30,000 Hungarian goose farmers are dependent on the foie gras industry [
3].
Bulgaria produced 1,500 tonnes of foie gras in
2005 [
4].
Québec also has a thriving foie gras industry. Many Canadian chefs use Québec foie gras as a demonstration of national pride.
Foie gras production involves force feeding birds much more than they consume in the wild and much more than they eat voluntarily. The feed, usually corn which is boiled with fat to facilitate ingestion, causes large amounts of
fat to deposit in the liver producing the buttery consistency.
Physiology and preparation
Geese used in foie gras production are generally Moullard geese. The ducks used are sterile hybrids: males of the species
Cairina moschata are crossed with female domestic ducks (
Anas platyrhynchos). These ducks are usually preferred to geese, as the carcass of a fattened duck is more valuable than that of a goose; other uses of ducks include popular dishes such as
confit de canard (duck confit).
Ducks and geese are
omnivorous, and like many birds, have very elastic throats which expand and allow them to store whole food, or large amounts of food, in the
esophagus while awaiting digestion in the stomach. In the wild this dilation allows them to swallow large items, such as a whole fish, for a long digestive process. Wild geese may consume 300 grams of protein and another 800 grams of grasses per day. Farmed geese allowed to graze on carrots adapt to eat 100 grams of protein, but may consume up to 2500 grams of the carrots per day. A wild duck may double its weight in the autumn, storing fat throughout much of its body and especially on the liver, in preparation for winter
migration.
[Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese, section 4] Foie gras production involves force feeding birds much more than they consume in the wild and much more than they eat voluntarily.
The geese or ducks used in foie gras production are initially free range, feeding on grasses that toughen the
esophagus. While still free roaming they are gradually introduced to a high starch diet that by itself leads to about half of the enlarged liver's size. The next feeding phase, which the French call
finition d'engraissement, or "completion of fattening", involves forced daily ingestion of controlled amounts of feed for 12 to 15 days with ducks and for 15 to 18 days with geese. During this phase ducks are usually fed twice daily while geese are usually fed 3 times daily.
Fattening
In modern production, the animal receives a controlled amount depending on the stage of the process, the weight of the animal, and the amount it last ingested. [
5]. Typically, at the start of production an animal might be fed a dry weight of 250 grams of food per day and up to 1000 grams (measured only by dry weight) by the end of the process. The actual amount of food force-fed is much greater, since the birds are fed a mash composed of about 53% dry and 47% liquid (by weight).
[Guemene D et al., "Force-feeding procedure and physiological indicators of stress in male mule ducks," Br Poult Sci. 2001 Dec;42(5):650-7, p.651.] These quantities of food result in unnatural effects on their bodies including livers swollen to many times their normal size, impaired liver function, expansion of the abdomen making it difficult for birds to walk, and death if the force feeding is continued. In addition, force feeding methods can cause scarring of the esophagus. [
6]
The feed is administered using a funnel fitted with a large tube (20 to 30 cm long) which forces the feed into the animal's esophagus. If using an auger system to drive the feed, the procedure takes about 45 to 60 seconds. If using a pneumatic system, the process takes about 2 to 3 seconds. Care is taken during the feeding process to avoid damaging the esophagus, which could cause injury or death in the animal; however, whether or not damage actually occurs is a matter of controversy. [
7]
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An entire foie gras (partly prepared for a terrine). |
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A slice of a solid piece of foie gras. |
Foie gras, in France, exists in some different legally-defined presentations, from the high-end to the low-end:
*
foie gras entier (entire foie gras), made of one or two whole liver lobes; it can be cooked (
cuit), semi-cooked (
mi-cuit), or fresh (
frais);
*
foie gras, made of pieces of livers reassembled together;
*
bloc de foie gras, a fully-cooked, molded block made of 98% or more foie gras; if termed
avec morceaux ("with pieces"), it must contain at least 50% of pieces of foie gras for goose, and 30% for duck.
In addition, there exist
pâté de foie gras,
mousse de foie gras (both must be made with 50% or more of foie gras),
parfait de foie gras (75% or more foie gras) and other preparations (no legal obligation).
Fully cooked preparations are generally sold in metallic or glass
cans for long-term conservation. Whole fresh foie gras is not usually available, except in some producers' markets in the producing regions. Frozen whole foie gras are sometimes sold in French supermarkets.
French foie gras preparation is generally over low heat (
terrine) as the traditional goose foie gras suffers from too much fat melt. The American palate, used to the more accessible duck foie gras, has more recipes and plate preparations that serve foie gras hot. The recent (in French culinary tradition) introduction of duck foie gras has resulted in some recipes crossing back from America to France. In Hungary goose foie gras is traditionally fried in goose fat, which is then poured over the foie gras and left to cool. It is also eaten warm after being fried or roasted, with some chefs smoking the foie gras over a cherry wood fire. In other parts of the world foie gras is served in exotic dishes such as foie gras
sushi or alongside
steak tartare.
Foie gras may be flavored with
truffles or liquors such as
armagnac. It is commonly served accompanied by crusty bread or toast. It is often served with a
dessert wine such as
Sauternes as the rich sweet flavours go well together, a classic example of
wine and food matching. Some people, on the other hand, prefer it with a dry white wine, such as those from
Alsace. Accompaniments may include
onion jam.
Foie gras is a luxury dish. Many in France only consume foie gras on special occasions, such as
Christmas or New Year's Day eve
réveillon dinners, though the recent increased availability of foie gras has made it a less exceptional dish. In some areas of France foie gras is a year round pleasure.
Duck foie gras is the cheaper and, since a change of production methods in the 1950s, by far the most common kind. The taste of duck foie gras is often referred to as musky with a subtle bitterness. Goose foie gras is noted for being less gamey and smoother.
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Goose being fed through a pipe during production of foie gras. |
Many contend the method of feeding the geese and ducks to be cruel. Force feeding results in unnatural effects on the birds' bodies including livers swollen to many times their normal size, impaired liver function, expansion of the abdomen making it difficult for birds to walk, and death if the force feeding is continued. In addition, force feeding methods can cause scarring of the esophagus. They use the term
gavage, a French term for stuffed feeding (and a medical term for feeding those who can't feed themselves). After political pressure from organizations lobbying for animal rights, certain jurisdictions have banned
gavage.
Late in 2003, a French coalition of animal rights groups published the
Proclamation for the Abolition of the Gavage, claiming that the practice of forced feeding is already illegal based on existing animal protection laws in France and the
European Union. However, these laws leave much for interpretation. The
Council of the European Union issued
Council Directive 98/58/EC on
20 July 1998 concerning the protection of farm animals. It stipulates that animal "owners or keepers take all reasonable steps to ensure the welfare of animals under their care and to ensure that those animals are not caused any unnecessary pain, suffering or injury."
The Report of the EU Scientific
Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese, Adopted
16 December 1998 is an 89-page review of studies from several producing countries. It "concludes that force feeding, as currently practised, is detrimental to the welfare of the birds." It notes that animal death rates increase by a factor of ten to twenty during the two-week forced feeding period. Also, while the consequences of force feeding in birds are reversible, the "level of
steatosis should be considered pathological."
The EU report notes that continued force feeding leads to early death of the animal. It also recognizes that producers do not put their birds livers into a pathological state. The timing of liver fattening is carefully controlled so the animal is slaughtered before it becomes a health hazard.{fact} An animal that stops the forced feeding process returns to its normal weight. Producers, and the EU report, also answer the criticism of increased mortality by noting that the overall mortality rate of ducks and geese in foie gras production is much less than that of farm raised chickens and turkeys.
Most foie gras producers do not consider their methods cruel, insisting that it is a natural process exploiting the animals' natural features. Producers argue that wild ducks and geese naturally ingest large amounts of whole food and gain weight before migration. Foie gras producers also contend that geese and ducks do not have a gag reflex, and therefore do not find force feeding uncomfortable. Michael Ginor, owner of Hudson Valley Foie Gras and author of
Foie Gras... A Passion, claims his birds come to him and says this is important because "a stressed or hurt bird won't eat and digest well or produce a foie gras."
Some of the physiological claims by producers are contradicted by the EU report. In response to the gag reflex claim, the report states, "The oropharyngeal area is particularly sensitive and is physiologically adapted to perform a gag reflex in order to prevent fluids entering the trachea. Force feeding will have to overcome this reflex and hence the birds may initially find this distressing and injury may result." Some critics argue that the birds would be better served sedated before being fed.
Industry groups including CIFOG, and researchers at
INRA affirm that forced feeding is not a cruel procedure and even that animals appreciate this treatment. The EU committee carried out several tests designed to detect pain or distress by looking at blood hormones and all of them were inconclusive or without any measurable difference to similarly raised animals. The committee did not observe any signs that animals appreciated being force fed, and observed that ducks attempted to move away when their feeder entered the room. However, veterinarians who serve at foie gras farms have observed behavior which indicates the birds appreciate force feeding.{fact}
Some EU foie gras producers seek protection under a "cultural exception" clause similar to the protection of
bullfighting in the south.
Prohibition
Foie gras is illegal in several locations, and legislation is pending in others. In August,
2003, the
Supreme Court of Israel declared foie gras production to be animal cruelty, and made production illegal beginning in March,
2005. On
September 29,
2004,
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a law that will ban the production or sale of foie gras from force fed birds in the state by
2012. The law would allow foie gras produced by methods that are not considered animal cruelty. Similar legislation is pending in
New York. California and New York are currently the only U.S. states with foie gras industries. On
April 26,
2006, the city council of
Chicago voted to make Chicago the first city in the
United States to ban foie gras [
8].
Force feeding is prohibited in:
*
Argentina*
Austria (six of nine provinces)
* The
Czech Republic*
Denmark*
Finland*
Germany*
Ireland*
Israel (2005)
*
Italy*
Luxembourg* The
Netherlands*
Norway*
Poland (
1999 — was the world's fifth largest producer)
*
Sweden*
Switzerland* The
United Kingdom*
United States:
California's ban comes into effect in 2012
*
United States:
Chicago,
IL ban effective August 2006 [
9]
Larousse Gastronomique, by Prosper Montagne (Ed.), Clarkson Potter, 2001. ISBN 0609609718
The Oxford Companion to Food, by Alan Davidson,
Oxford University Press. ISBN 0192115790
Foie Gras: A Passion, by Michael A. Ginor, John Wiley & Sons, 1999. ISBN 0471293180
*
What is Foie Gras?*About the controversy on
gavage:
** Campaigns against force-feeding
***
GourmetCruelty.com: The Truth about Foie Gras (from a point of view that
gavage is cruel to animals)
***
Stopgavage Manifesto for the abolition of force-feeding (French site with pages in English)
***
Stop Force-Feeding***
Foie Gras: Delicacy of Despair PETA sponsored page
***
NO Foie Gras A Farm Sanctuary Campaign
***
Force-Fed Abuse from The Humane Society of the United States
** Legal texts
***
German law, §10 prohibiting gavage (in
German)
** News reports
***
Controversy in NY state surrounding Hudson Valley Foie Gras, the largest U.S. producer.***
Fox News story about California's anti-foie gras law***
Article regarding foie gras controversy in Chicago and local government attempts to stop sales of the delicacy in city restaurants***
Buzzle.com report on Israeli ruling***
A UK Independent article about the controversy***
NPR: France Questions the Foie Gras Tradition** Op-ed
***
The Controversy Over Foie Gras - Does a Duck have a Soul? How foie gras became the new fur.
** Scientific Studies
*** Report of the EU Scientific
Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare on Welfare Aspects of the Production of Foie Gras in Ducks and Geese*About preparation:
**
A cookbook review of Foie Gras... a Passion**
Foie Gras FAQ: The Liver Everyone Loves**
Decree 93-999 of August 9, 1993 defining legal categories and terms for foie gras in France
