-
May 14, 2008 5:19 pm US/Central
-
Digg |
Facebook |
E-mail
|
Print
Foie Gras Ban: City Repeals 'Silliest Law Ever'
Animal Rights Activists Say Preparing Delicacy Amounts To Animal Cruelty
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
The battle over the Chicago ban on the controversial goose liver delicacy known as foie gras came down to a place where Italian beef may be the favored food treat -- the floor of the City Council.
It was championed by animal rights activists but made Chicago a worldwide culinary punch line. Aldermen on Wednesday repealed the city's foie gras ban.
Tell us what you think about the foie gras ban
Read What Others Had To SayThe City Council passed the ban in April 2006. Its sponsor, Ald. Joe Moore (49th), said the city needed to condemn animal cruelty.
"Foie gras" is French for "fat liver." Animal activists say ducks and geese are brutally force fed grain to increase their livers to ten times their normal size.
But even before it was passed, the restaurant industry said it was a heavy-handed regulation that would make Chicago a laughingstock. Mayor Richard M. Daley agreed, calling it "the silliest law the City Council has ever passed," and has supported moves to overturn it.
With Mayor Daley's blessing, Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) helped spearhead a move to repeal the ban, and Wednesday he rounded up enough votes. Tunney does not serve foie gras at his Ann Sather restaurants, and did not before the ordinance passed.
Last year, Ald. Berny Stone (50th), who originally supported the ordinance, led a move to repeal it. The motion was sent to committee and not taken up again until now.
Ald. Moore looked very lonely as his move to debate the repeal failed in a voice vote, and his microphone was cut off until it was too late.
"For the mayor to fail to recognize me and debate the merits of the issue is the height of arrogance," Moore said.
Later, Daley explained his actions.
"No it wasn't, look, they all voted for it, about 38 or so. Everybody knew," Daley said at a news conference. "Once you get into every menu, every menu item, we'll be here forever, every day."
A lawsuit was also filed in U.S. District Court last year claiming the city has no right to regulate the sale of a product that is produced legally, but a judge dismissed the lawsuit, saying the ban was not unconstitutional.
Restaurateurs continued to protest the law, sometimes giving away foie gras rather than selling it. They say the ban made Chicago look like a very unsophisticated city.
Some council members agreed, and said there was fear that the city had become something of a laughing stock in the culinary world, pressure from the local restaurant industry, and, despite what animal rights advocates might believe, the feeling that aldermen ought to be dealing with more important issues.
Proponents of foie gras are toasting Wednesday's city council decision.
Chef Didier Durand of Cyrano's Bistrot showed off his pet duck at a news conference Wednesday afternoon, and said he's thrilled foie gras is back.
"The whole world was making fun of us because foie gras is a USDA approved item and if you don't like foie gras just have smoked salmon," Durand said.
Chef Durand says force feeding ducks is not cruelty to animals because a ducks neck is made to expand, in order to swallow fish.
He adds that in 2005, before foie gras was banned, Chicagoans ate more than 46,000 pounds of it.
The only high-profile violation of the ban since it was enacted was against Doug Sohn, owner of Hot Doug's, who sold a hot dog with foie gras on it and pleaded guilty to violating the ordinance.
Last August, the Chicago Reader quoted city Health Department spokesman Tim Hadac as saying the department does only minimal enforcement of the ordinance.
CBS 2's Joanie Lum and Mike Parker contributed to this report.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Get More From cbs2chicago.com