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Ordering ethical foie gras requires making a personal decision about which methods of raising geese and ducks you consider to be ethical. After you have done some research and reading about gavage, the process by which the animals are typically force fed with grain to produce foie gras, you will be able to formulate a stance on the ethics of this procedure and on the various alternate ways of producing foie gras. Once you know your position, it will be relatively easy to figure out if and how you can order some foie gras without compromising your moral standards.
"Foie gras" is the enlarged liver of a duck or goose. It is an expensive delicacy, because it is labor intensive to produce. Foie gras is prepared in a variety of ways, and has its modern culinary origins in French cooking. The liver is enlarged through forced feeding of the birds. This has led to complaints from animal-rights activists that the rearing of ducks and geese for foie gras constitutes animal cruelty.
