02.05.2016

French authorities halted the production of foie gras, fattened duck or goose liver, until August throughout southwestern France as the region braces for a particularly virulent strain of avian influenza.
The effect of the ban will be felt worldwide, as France supplies an estimated 75 percent of the world’s foie gras-- 70 percent of which comes from the affected area. Exports of the delicacy amounted to 5,000 tons in 2014.
The French minister of agriculture said the government would compensate the breeders for their estimated $150,000 loss.
Force-feeding has been banned in several countries, including the U.K., Germany, Italy and Israel.  In 2004, California passed a law that barred the sale of the delicacy, including in restaurants. The law was in effect from 2012 until January 2015, when a federal judge ruled it was unconstitutional.