FERNDALE, NY — Hudson Valley Foie Gras (HVFG) co-founder Izzy Yanay said in a video on the company’s website that before he and his partner Michael Ginor opened the operation in the 1980s, there were no foie gras production farms in the United States.  Now there are three farms that produce foie gras in the United States, and two of them, HVFG and La Belle Farms, are located in Sullivan County 

For years activists and others have been trying to interrupt the HVFG operation and the production and sale of foie gras, which is produced by force feeding ducks or geese through a tube. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a case regarding a ban on foie gras in California, thus leaving in place a previous ruling upholding the ban.

In 2015, an activist named Amber Canavan broke into one of HVFG’s three farms in Sullivan County and took a couple of the ducks. She ultimately pleaded guilty to trespassing and was sentenced to 30 days in the Sullivan County Jail.

The City of Chicago briefly banned the sale of foie gras in restaurants in the Windy City in 2006, but after an outcry from restaurateurs and others, the ban was overturned two years later. 

In French, foie gras means fatty liver, and the force feeding process, called gavage, dates back to 2500 B.C. and ancient Egypt.

The most recent threat to HVFG is a proposed ban in New York City. The councilwoman who introduced the ban in February, Carlina Rivera, told The Villager, “I can think of nothing more commonsense than ending the egregious practice of selling a luxury food item made from the gruesome abuse of animals.”

The prospect of a ban sufficiently alarmed Sullivan County Chairman Luis Alvarez that he turned out to a meeting of the Town of Liberty board on March 18 to spread the word on just how much revenue local governments earn from the foie gras facilities. He said the facilities pay $311,000 in tax revenue to local municipalities, and employ hundreds of people. A ban in New York City could have a negative impact on the operations, he said.

HVFG sent a letter to Rivera on March 4. It read, in part, “HVFG is a company made up of immigrants, as over 90% of its 284 employees are South American. The average hourly wage is $15 per hour, not including owners and senior management, and not including the value of free housing and utilities for 100 of the farm’s employees. HVFG has a bi-weekly free medical clinic and a robust community garden program…

“The neighboring La Belle Farms in Sullivan County also employs 80 people. The regional economic impact by both farms is estimated to be at least $150 million. Over the years the two companies combined have been one of the largest economic engines for Sullivan County, a rural area with little manufacturing, a struggling economy and generally poor quality soil for farming.

“New York City is the largest market for the Sullivan County farmers. The loss of this market risks the viability of these businesses. A number of nearby and supporting businesses would also be deeply affected.” The farm estimated that 4,000 pounds of foie gras are sold in New York City every week.

“As written, the legislation would also ban the meat and feathers of the duck from being sold in New York City and contributing to the sales and vitality of many small and medium sized businesses,” the letter continues. “This would be extremely disruptive to the down industry, as feathers from foie gras farming in the U.S. is a significant contributor to the manufacturing of down bedding and coats. A large part of the duck found in U.S. pet products also comes from foie gras farms in the U.S. Hudson Valley and La Belle farms supply about 50,000 pounds of duck product to pet food processors weekly.”