Gothamist has never had a taste for foie gras (although, some of us do) as we can't get past the fact that we're eating liver, but animal rights activists are trying to get the delicacy banned entirely. In an appeal to the state legislature, groups including the Humane Society asked the state's Department of Agriculture and Markets to label foie gras as an "adulterated" food, which is defined as food that is "diseased, contaminated, filthy, putrid or decomposed." This would give the agriculture commissioner the option of banning foie gras. The Times gets what could be the best quote regarding this issue from Eric Ripert, the executive chef and co-owner of Le Bernardin who sighs and then says:
We can criticize how foie gras is produced and be concerned about the health of the duck and blah, blah, blah, O.K., fine.
Funny, we thought ducks went "quack, quack." Ripert also adds that it might be more cruel to eat a raw oyster, as it's alive, now conjuring up visions of oysters silently screaming as they are slurped down with a mignonette.
Earlier this year, the Chicago City Council banned the sale of foie gras, which didn't have an economic impact on the city at all. Any decision to ban the sale or production of foie gras by Albany, however, could impact New York State's economy as New York is the largest producer of foie gras in North America. In fact, the state announced an Economic Development Fund grant of $420,000 to Hudson Valley Foie Gras.
