Will New York Ban Cruel Practice of Force-Feeding Birds?

Compassion Over Killing (COK) has sent a letter in support of State Bill S1559, legislation that would ban the painful and cruel force-feeding of birds in New York, home to two of the nation’s largest foie gras factory farms.

COK writes, “New York is one of the only states in the US where this practice continues, and hidden-camera footage taken by a COK investigator as well as footage filmed by others has routinely exposed the cruel and barbaric nature of force-feeding birds.”

In order to produce foie gras (which translates to “fatty liver”), ducks and geese are grabbed by their necks or wings and a metal pipe is shoved down their throats in order to pump abnormally large amounts of food into their stomachs.

This extreme overfeeding causes their livers to become diseased and swell up to ten times the normal size, inducing a condition known as “hepatic lipidosis” or fatty liver disease, which causes the birds immense pain and discomfort.

Click here to read COK’s full letter supporting S1559.

Even though COK’s investigative video was filmed during a “white-gloved” tour of New York’s Hudson Valley Foie Gras, with the company’s best foot forward, our heartbreaking video shows birds suffering as they’re grabbed by their wings, force fed, and shackled upside down to be killed.

The bottom line is foie gras production is brutal for birds. In fact, it’s already been banned in California and more than a dozen nations, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Israel, and Turkey. COK urges New York lawmakers to join the growing flock that says this cruelty just won’t fly.