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A French town has banned foie gras from being served at municipal events, becoming the third to do so this year and the fifteenth overall in the country.
Read more: New York City’s Foie Gras Ban Challenged By State
Pessac, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of France, has joined municipalities including Bordeaux, Poitiers, and Montpellier in introducing such a ban. The town’s Mayor, Franck Raynal, wrote to the animal rights organization L214 about the matter. He cited Pessac’s progress in implementing its animal cause action plan for 2021 to 2026.
“As part of its commitment and keen to be attentive to the breeding conditions for the production of foie gras, the City of Pessac formally prohibits the service of foodstuffs based on foie gras during municipal events,” Raynal wrote. He is the region’s first conservative mayor to take this stance on foie gras.
Read more: France Just Suspended Its Ban On Words Like ‘Steak’ For Plant Foods
Foie gras is a pâté made from goose or duck livers. It’s produced by force-feeding the animals, often multiple times a day, to make their livers swell and become fatty. L214 has long campaigned against foie gras and has previously revealed the abysmal conditions that breeding birds in the industry are kept in.
Plant-based alternatives
Raynal’s letter said that plant-based alternatives to foie gras would be introduced in schools and municipal catering instead.
There is growing interest in foie gras alternatives as people seek more ethical food options. French startup Gourmey made the world’s first cultivated foie gras in 2021, using stem cells from a duck egg. The company is now seeking regulatory approval in markets including the UK and US.
When French Michelin-starred chef Alexis Gauthier turned his restaurant Gauthier Soho completely vegan, he created “faux gras” using plants. Writing in Plant Based News in 2021, he said that the creation actually grew his customer base as people were so intrigued to try it.
Read more: Planted To Launch Fermented Whole Cut Steak in France
