Foie Gras Is Sinful, Says Bishop

When gourmets say something is “sinful,” they usually mean “decadent.” When Dominic Walker, the bishop of Monmouth in Wales, says foie gras is sinful, he means in the biblical sense. In a letter he sent on behalf of PETA U.K. to the Welsh Western Mail newspaper, Bishop Walker urges Christians to refuse to eat the deadly “delicacy”:

Lent is a time when Christians are encouraged to think about what they eat, and to fast or abstain from their favourite foods. We are also encouraged to engage in some positive action, and I would ask your readers to give some thought to foie gras production which involves force-feeding ducks and geese until their livers become diseased and painfully enlarged to up to ten times their normal size …. I would urge Christians to refuse to eat foie gras and to write to those stores that stock it and to those restaurants that serve it and to help end this cruel trade.

Foie gras production, which involves pumping up to 4 pounds of mush into ducks’ and geese’s stomachs every day, is so cruel that it is illegal in the U.K.—although, paradoxically, it is still legal to sell the stuff. Both the production and sale of foie gras have been banned in California, a law that goes into effect next year.

If you see foie gras on a restaurant menu, take the bishop’s advice and complain to the management. And please take a moment to urge Royal Caribbean to stop supporting the torture of ducks and geese by serving foie gras on its cruises.
Written by Alisa Mullins