Foie Gras Legal Again in Chicago
May 15, 2008 by daranee
In 2006, the Chicago City Council banned foie gras from the menu of Chicago restaurants because of the perceived cruelty involved in making it. The process involves force feeding geese or ducks until their livers bloat. Enforcing the law was difficult as you can imagine. Given more urgent duties, Chicago police were reluctant to spend their precious time arresting restaurateurs.
The law has now been overturned.
Chicagoans can feast on foie gras once more. The Chicago City Council just repealed the ban on its sale that it put in place two years ago.
Monica Davey, the Times’s Chicago bureau chief, says the ban has been a source of embarrassment for the city and the repeal comes as residents have accused officials of trying to micromanage people’s lives, with talk of prohibiting smoking even outside along the lakefront and eliminating transfats from restaurants.
No other American city has prohibited foie gras’ sale, but California has passed a law banning it as of 2012.
I’ve had foie gras and I’ll admit it’s delicious. But really, normal goose liver is delicious also. No need to force feed them. However, a ban is surely over the top.
Here’s a picture of a raw foie gras. Notice the weight. A normal goose or duck liver is about 8 oz. That’s my own approximation from a time I made pate.
