Producer, Restaurant File Federal Suit Over Calif. Foie Gras Ban; Chef Flaunts 'Foie You' Menu
Foie gras with blueberry sauce. Image from Shutterstock.
As a California law banning the production and sale of items created from force-fed birds took effect on July 1, the nation’s largest producer of foie gras joined with a state restaurant to file a federal lawsuit challenging the new regime and seeking injunctive relief.
They contend the law is unconstitutional, both because it is too vague to give potential enforcement targets fair notice of what is banned and because it violates the commerce clause by regulating the conduct of companies outside California, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Others have taken a different route in protesting the restriction on selling foie gras, a fatty duck or goose liver delicacy. A San Clemente chef made foie gras the centerpiece of multiple dishes on his restaurant’s menu the day after the ban took effect. Antoine Price entitled the menu for the evening “Foie You,” and said he was willing to be locked up, if enforcement took that direction, the Orange County Register recounts.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Foie Gras Is Once Again Legal in Chicago”
ABAJournal.com: “Libel Suit Over Foie Gras Video That Prompted ‘Silliest Law’ Settles”
