In 2004, California’s Senate passed a controversial bill that banned the force-feeding of ducks and geese, called gavage, that produces foie gras, a culinary delicacy. The ban wasn’t enforced until 2012, sparking a long battle between chefs and animal rights groups and activists, who contend that the feeding method, in which corn is fed to the birds to purposefully enlarge their livers, is cruel. Many chefs, farmers and food writers have argued that that interpretation is anthropomorphism run amok that ignores centuries of agricultural tradition and the physiognomy of ducks and geese, many of which gorge themselves before migratory flights.
Source: latimes.com – Los Angeles Times