Foie Gras Humane-Washing

On November 10,  Humane Society of the United States’ senior director of farm animal protection, Paul Shapiro, published an article in The Atlantic responding to a man who opposes a ban on foie gras. In a recent piece in The New York Times, a foie gras defender said that the farmed ducks run up to be fed, implying that force-feeding the birds was not cruel. Shapiro argues that in reality, the ducks are running towards the workers because they know that they will be forcibly grabbed if they don’t. Shapiro also concludes that foie gras-industry promoters continue to “humane-wash” their claims, and that a greater call for reform will occur as more Americans learn about cruel factory-farming practices.