Their goose isn’t cooked yet!
New York’s foie gras farmers are making one last stand against the Big Apple’s ban on the French delicacy — taking their fight to court once again.
Lawyers for La Belle Farm and Hudson Valley Foie Gras will be filing a new plea to the New York State Court of Appeals on Monday in a bid to stop the 2019 City Council ban on foie gras, which is made from deliberately enlarged duck and goose liver, which critics say is cruel process.
“We’re fighting to protect our family, our employees, and our way of life,” Sergio Saravia, whose family has operated La Belle Farm in Ferndale, N.Y., for nearly 30 years, told The Post.
Foie gras distributors warned that losing access to the traditional dish holds deeper significance.
“It’s a shame for the liberties, gastronomy in general, and quality of life,” said Ariane Daguin, daughter of famous French chef Andre Daguin. She co-founded and ran specialty food distributor D’Artagnan for 40 years.
“I come from a region in France where foie gras is sacred. Where it is considered the most delicious food in the world,” she said of the Gascony region, where he father once ran a two star Michelin restaurant.
Daguin also shot down claims from animal rights activists who claim the forced feeding that is required to create foie gras is a cruel practice.
“We know that the way we raise them does not hurt or does not stress the duck or geese. We know that. We live it,” she said.
“If you ban foie gras… you should ban chicken factory farming because that is much more stressful for the animal,” said Daguin, adding, “I think that will be the next step.”
Daguin noted that not a single City Council member accepted her invitation to tour foie gras farms while the ban was being considered back in 2019.
The ban has been in contention since it was passed — first being struck down by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets in 2019, saying local municipalities must abide by state rules.
That determination was appealed by the city in Albany State Supreme Court — which upheld the commissioner’s ruling. The city appealed again in the Appellate Division, Third Department, which then upheld NYC’s ban in March.
“We will be asking the Court of Appeals to hear the case,” said farmer’s attorney, Edward J. Phillips of Keane & Beane, P.C.
“The lower court’s ruling is unprecedented and leaves all farmers across the state vulnerable to similar sales bans by municipalities.”
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