Article: Should we swallow cruelty?

March 09, 2009 Categories: Mailbox SAHABAT Alam Malaysia (SAM) would like to draw attention to the recent stopover in Kuala Lumpur by a celebrity chef to introduce some of his signature dishes. SAM learned that foie gras was included in many of his recipes. This shocking revelation prompted us to highlight the truths behind the cruel practice of producing this food product. The term foie gras literally means “fatty liver”. This fatty liver is created by farmers ramming pipes down the throats of ducks or geese two or three times a day, and pumping as much as four pounds of grain and fat into the animals’ stomachs while the birds desperately struggle to get away. Injury to the birds is common. The esophagi is sometimes painfully punctured by the pipe during the violent force-feedings. Necropsies on dead birds that have been force-fed revealed ruptured livers, throat damage, esophageal trauma, and food spilling from the dead animals’ throats and nostrils. This torture causes the birds’ livers to bloat until up to 10 times their normal size. This causes enormous internal pressure, with many birds having difficulty standing because of their engorged livers. They tear at their own feathers and cannibalise each other because of stress. The ducks and geese are often crammed so tightly into overcrowded sheds that movement is impossible. Force-feeding subjects them to physiological and behavioural suffering which reduces their well being. The mortality rates on foie gras farms are between 10 and 25 times higher than other duck and geese farms, with evidence of severe wing fracture and severe tissue damage to throat muscles. The consumption of foie gras is one of the most sickening examples of humans using cruelty for “luxury”. This is malicious cruelty of the worst kind carried out on ducks and geese. It is so inhumane that 15 nations have already outlawed the force feeding of birds for foie gras. The Agriculture Ministry should consider banning the import of any food product containing foie gras and at the same time, hoteliers and restaurateurs should enlighten consumers or food lovers about the needless suffering of birds for a mere palatable dish. S M Mohd Idris Sahabat Alam Malaysia This article was taken from: The Malay Mail: Mailbox 9 March 2009