Imagine a metal tube forced down your throat—not once, but several times a day, every day, for weeks. The foie gras industry markets this as a delicacy. We call it what it is.

Torture.

Foie gras is produced through a process called gavage. A pneumatic pump blasts grain directly into a bird’s stomach through a metal tube, on a daily basis, until their liver grows to ten times its normal size.

The resulting organ is diseased. Veterinarians classify it as hepatic lipidosis: a condition caused by extreme fat accumulation in the liver. Birds in late-stage force-feeding often struggle to breathe, can barely stand, and cannot move freely.

It’s heartbreaking. 💔

Ducks and geese are intelligent, social animals. They form bonds. They play. They feel fear. They feel pain. In the wild, they migrate thousands of miles and navigate by the stars.

During force-feeding, birds spend their final weeks confined in individual cages or crowded pens, unable to engage in behaviors that come naturally to them.

Experts across fields agree: birds have a profound capacity to suffer. The foie gras industry depends on us not thinking about that.

This isn’t luxury. It’s abuse.

Communities from Pittsburgh to New York City are saying “no” to this cruelty. But lobbyists are actively working to overturn local bans and block new ones from passing. Rather than acknowledge that force-feeding is indefensible, the industry has doubled down—spending money and political capital to protect a practice that the public, when it learns the truth, consistently rejects.

Depending on where you live, there may be a local foie gras ban you can support directly. And wherever you are, you can help protect animals from dangerous federal bills that would wipe out existing state laws protecting animals from abuse. Sign up, and we’ll connect you with the actions that matter most.