When was foie gras production banned in the uk

Log In. Contact us Sign up for newsletters. Log In Register now My account. By Madeleine Cuff Environment Reporter. September 9, pm Updated pm. Sign up now to get daily updates and analysis on COP26, and the race to stop climate disaster Email address is invalid Thank you for subscribing! Sorry, there was a problem. MPs told the government last month they were losing patience over its lack of action on outlawing imports of the controversial delicacy made from the fattened livers of geese and ducks that have been repeatedly force-fed.

The government has repeatedly hinted it will ban imports of foie gras, which is considered so cruel that it is illegal to produce in the UK, although an estimated tonnes is imported from mainland Europe each year. In its animal-welfare action plan published in May, the government pledged to gather evidence to shape a decision on imports.

It had long said that banning imports was impossible while Britain was in the EU. But now sources have confirmed to The Independent that the government is holding talks with interested parties, including leaders in the UK food industry and animal welfare organisations.

In an open letter to the ministers, the MPs, including Conservative backbencher Henry Smith, called for an urgent meeting. Its method of production is extremely controversial: to fatten the birds ahead of slaughter, they are force-fed with more food than they would naturally eat in the wild.

This process is known as gavage. Today, foie gras production is banned in a number of countries, including the Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Poland, and Turkey.

Production within Britain has been illegal since , however the country continues to import it. Ducks and geese do not have a glottis — the slit-like opening on the floor of the pharynx that controls airflow in and out of the respiratory passages. Rather, they have an elastic oesophagus that can expand like a snake, noted EU Foie Gras.

The EU organisation also stressed that European foie gras producers have gone beyond their legal obligations by adopting a European Charter on Breeding of Waterfowl for Foie Gras.

The charter aims to ensure a higher standard of animal welfare, by ensuring animals are comfortable when resting, have enough space to move freely, be free of disease, and able to express normal, non-harmful, social behaviours. Show more.