A Meat and Dairy Article used with permission from All-Creatures.org

Lia Wilbourn reports on exciting headway made this year in the fight against foie gras production and consumption.

Portland & NYC Victories Advance the Global Fight to End Foie Gras Cruelty!
From Lia Wilbourn, IDA In Defense of Animals, idausa.org
June 2026

Photos from Canva

The movement to end the cruel production and consumption of foie gras is building momentum, with recent major wins in the United States reflecting growing public concern for ducks and geese. In Portland, Oregon, the city council voted to ban the sale of force-fed foie gras within city limits, while a New York appellate court upheld New York City’s authority to enforce its ban. The more people learn about the horrors of what animals endure in the food system, the more support builds for real change.

"Foie gras" ("fat liver" in French) is known as a “luxury” product and is one of the food industry's most extreme forms of animal cruelty. It is produced by force-feeding ducks and geese multiple times a day through tubes shoved down their throats, often by restraining their heads and pumping large quantities of food into them at once. This causes their livers to swell up to 10 times their normal size, resulting in severe suffering, including pain in their beaks and necks, respiratory distress, difficulty breathing and walking, illness, and premature death.

Most ducks and geese are confined by the thousands in warehouses and cages where they are denied sunlight, the ability to stretch their wings, and the opportunity to engage in the natural water-based behaviors essential to their well-being.

On June 4, 2026, the Portland ordinance was passed by a 7–5 vote and will take effect after a 180-day implementation period, with $5,000 penalties for continued sales. The win followed years of organizing by Portland activists and animal protection organizations, with In Defense of Animals supporting the campaign by mobilizing supporters to call, email, attend city council meetings, and submit testimony.

In a separate ruling, a New York appellate court upheld the city’s foie gras ban in March 2026, confirming its authority after years of legal challenges and delays.

In addition to Portland and New York City, California has banned the sale of foie gras produced by force-feeding, following years of legal and legislative challenges, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Brookline, Massachusetts, have passed bans or restrictions on its sale. Other countries, including India, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, and Israel, restrict force-feeding or the production and sale of foie gras in various forms.

Now, New Jersey has an opportunity to join this growing movement. Legislation currently under consideration would prohibit the force-feeding of ducks, geese, and other birds for foie gras production.

Ducks and geese are not the only animals being tortured for food products. Pigs, cows, goats, sheep, turkeys, chickens, and fish are also subjected to the equally cruel standard practices and slaughter methods used in the dairy, meat, and egg industries. Marketing deception can no longer hide what animal advocates worldwide have documented and exposed behind the closed doors of animal farms and slaughterhouses.

The accelerating wave of victories across cities, states, and countries shows the public is increasingly rejecting animal cruelty. By living vegan and speaking up about the abusive realities of using animals for food products, we help create a future rooted in justice, empathy, and legal protection for all animals.

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Posted on All-Creatures.org: June 29, 2026
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