PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Foie Gras-Free Pittsburgh Becoming a Reality
by Darren Gruetze Thursday, Aug. 05, 2004 at 7:02 PM
voicesforanimals@yahoo.com

Update on Voices for Animals's Foie Gras-Free Pittsburgh Campaign: Bikki Restaurant in Shadyside joins 7 other local restaurants in no longer selling foie gras.

Voices for Animals (formally Voices for Animal Liberation) Foie Gras-Free Pittsburgh campaign, (previously reported on by Eric Jonas Animal Rights Activists Speak Out About Foie Gras Tuesday May 18, 2004), achieved their eighth victory on July 31st, when Bikki, located in Shadyside, agreed to pull the item from their menu.

Less than a half hour into the first protest against the Shadyside restaurant for their continued support of foie gras, the owner, Bikki Kochhar, wrote and signed the following statement: “Effective 7/31/04 Foie Gras will no longer be served at Bikki Restaurant. It will be taken off the menu immediately�?. This quick victory came as a pleasant surprise as it sometimes takes months to convince restaurants to remove the gourmet cruelty from their menus.

When asked the reason behind the focus on foie gras, Voices for Animals campaign coordinator Candice Zawoiski, said “It is an absolute disgrace that ducks and geese suffer such horrendous cruelty for something as trivial as a delicacy item. If someone treated dogs or cats the way ducks and geese are treated on foie gras farms, the perpetrator would be thrown in jail.�? For those unfamiliar with foie gras, it is the fattened and diseased liver of a duck or goose. In order for the duck or goose’s liver to reach the weight common for this dish, twelve times its normal size, the duck or goose must be force-fed a third of their body weight every day via a metal pipe and kept incapacitated between feedings.

Bikki is not alone in their decision to remove this $13 a plate appetizer; Baum Vivant, The Big Burrito Group (owner of former foie gras sellers: Kaya, Soba, Eleven, and Casbah) and others have already agreed to strike the dish from their menu.

VFA’s Foie Gras-Free Pittsburgh campaign is ongoing and aims to eliminate foie gras from the restaurants, distributors, and grocery chains in the Pittsburgh area. Voices for Animals of Western Pennsylvania is a local animal rights organization that works by means of non-violent campaigning, community dialogue, public education and direct action. More information about the Foie Gras-Free Pittsburgh campaign can be found at VFA’s website http://www.pghfoiegras.com. For results of the investigation at the two largest foie gras farms in the country, please visit http://www.gourmetcruelty.com

www.pghfoiegras.com

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