Victory! Austin-Based Hai Hospitality Bans Foie Gras After Push From Duck Defenders

For Immediate Release:
September 16, 2024

Contact:
Reed Bolonyi 202-483-7382

After hearing from PETA and other animal allies that ducks used for foie gras are force-fed until their livers bloat and are then slaughtered, Austin-based restaurant group Hai Hospitality has removed foie gras from the menu at all its Asian fusion restaurants across the U.S., including Uchi Austin. The victory follows multiple protests organized by Animal Activism Mentorship and Austin Animal Advocates—including a recent demonstration outside the home of a Hai Hospitality investor—and more than 40,000 e-mails from PETA members and supporters.

“Hai Hospitality made the right call to no longer sell the diseased livers of birds who were painfully force-fed,” says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA is calling on other eateries that still offer this ‘delicacy of despair’ to follow suit and for diners to speak up for ducks if they see foie gras on any menu.”

To produce foie gras, workers shove tubes down the throats of male birds up to three times each day, pumping several pounds of fat and grain into their stomachs and causing their livers to swell to up to 10 times their normal size. Investigations into foie gras farms in the U.S. and Europe have revealed sick, dying, and dead animals, some with holes in their necks from force-feeding injuries.

Foie gras production is outlawed in more than a dozen countries as well as in California, and numerous companies—including Costco, IKEA, Sam’s Club, Target, and Whole Foods—refuse to sell it.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to eat”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.