Two-million-gallon manure lagoon ‘unsatisfactory’

The battle between foie gras producers and animal rights groups continues

By FRITZ MAYER

FERNDALE, NY — The battle between foie gras producers and those who want to ban the delicacy continued in December with the notification of a new lawsuit. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) formally notified Hudson Valley Foie Gras (HVFG), which is located in Ferndale, that the group intends to bring another lawsuit against HVFG for violating portions of the Clean Water Act. Specifically, the group alleged that HVFG operates a 2-million gallon manure lagoon that has been labeled “unsatisfactory” by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) because it was constructed without the state’s knowledge and without being evaluated by an engineer.

Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of animal protection litigation for the HSUS, said, “Like many factory farms, Hudson Valley Foie Gras (the largest foie gras producer in the United States) is operating in total disregard of the welfare of its neighbors, the environment and the animals confined in its facility. If this facility can’t even operate in compliance with our most fundamental federal pollution laws, it should not be operating at all.”

A spokesperson for the DEC confirmed that there was a violation regarding the lagoon and said that it was being addressed.

Izzy Yanay, one of the owners of HVFG called the lawsuit, which is the second one filed against the company by the HSUS, part of an ongoing attempt by the HSUS to shut down the foie gras industry in the United States. (HSUS has also filed a lawsuit against the other foie gras producer in Sullivan County, La Bella Farms.) Yanay said that HSUS uses freedom of information laws (FOIL) to get updates on the farm on a weekly basis. He said the engineer overseeing the lagoon, “…didn’t dot an I or something.” He added that part of the legal strategy against HVFG is to force the company to pay growing fines and legal fees in an effort to force the company out of business.

The battle against the production of foie gras has been growing in the United States. Foie gras, which in French means “fatty liver,” is produced by force-feeding young ducks or geese enough corn to swell their livers to several times the normal size. Critics say these livers are diseased; supporters say they are delicious, and the sides disagree about whether the process causes pain to the fowl.

Anti-foie gras forces made progress in Chicago, where serving foie gras in restaurants was banned by the city council in August 2006. The ban, however, has been hard to enforce.

A recent article in the Chicago Sun Times reported that several upscale restaurants within the city limits served the controversial food during the 2006 holiday season, a time when foie gras sales are traditionally higher than usual.

Any chef who violates the ban faces a $250 fine, but Tim Hadac, a spokesman for the city health department, told the paper that investigating such complaints “is without question the least important thing we’re called upon to do.”

While about a dozen restaurants have received fines, many chefs believe as long as they use foie gras as an ingredient of another dish, and if they don’t call it foie gras, they won’t be fined.

The chefs had support from Chicago Mayor Richard Daley who has called the law the “silliest” one he’s ever seen; and the law is being challenged in court.

Still, the idea of a ban has numerous supporters. A ban was passed in California, though it does not take effect until 2012. Other bans are being considered by New York City and San Diego.

The heightened concern of the treatment of ducks and geese in the United States is expected to have little, if any, impact on sales of the product worldwide. In fact, just the opposite may be true. According to a Reuters wire story, 85 percent of the foie gras sold in the world comes from France, and the nearly $2 billion global industry grew by six percent in 2006. In the United States sales also grew, reportedly because of increased awareness of the product, thanks to press coverage of the controversy.