Foie gras

Foie gras (also fattened liver) is the liver of a duck or goose fattened by force-feeding (gavage). Since 2006 French law has called it protected cultural and gastronomic heritage, and EU rules set a minimum raw liver weight: 300 g for duck, 400 g for goose. It is sold raw, mi-cuit or sterilised.

Did you know that a 1998 EU scientific report mentions an Egyptian statuette in the Louvre more than 4,500 years old? Olivier de Serres described the Gascon method in 1619. France once fattened only geese but switched to ducks from the 1950s; today ducks give 99 % of French foie gras.

Most often the bird is a mulard, a cross between a male Muscovy and a domestic duck, or a Muscovy duck; among geese, the oie du Gers and the grey south-western goose. According to CIFOG, ducklings stay in a heated house until 4–5 weeks old, then spend about 2.5 months outdoors, and from about 12 weeks progressive feeding begins, for no more than 2 weeks.

In 2024 France produced 12,200 t of raw foie gras, about 60 % of world output, according to FranceAgriMer. It comes from 3,500 producers. The French eat about 175 g per person, and 52 % of household purchases fall between November and January. Imported raw liver comes mainly from Bulgaria (62 % of imports) and Hungary (32 %).

Decree 93-999 separates three names. «Foie gras entier» is a whole liver or one or more lobes with seasoning. «Foie gras» is pieces of lobes pressed together, each at least 20 g. «Bloc de foie gras» is a reconstituted mass; with pieces, each must weigh at least 10 g and together they make up at least 30 % of the product. A «parfait» holds at least 75 % foie gras, a pâté or «mousse» at least 50 %.

Duck foie gras, CIFOG says, tastes stronger and more rustic and holds its shape better, while goose is finer, softer and melts in the mouth. Raw liver should be even in colour, firm but not hard.

In 1998 the EU Scientific Committee on Animal Health and Animal Welfare concluded that force-feeding as then practised is detrimental to the birds' welfare, and noted that some countries prohibit it; a minority opinion from one member is attached. In 2024 the Strasbourg administrative court stated that Directive 98/58/EC does not prohibit this feeding.

Keep raw liver up to 7 days at 0–4 °C in a clean cloth, and sear slices for a few minutes in a very hot pan with no added fat. Mi-cuit and conserves are covered on Pâtés, rillettes, foie gras and confit, the origin-protected product on Canard à foie gras du Sud-Ouest.

Why this matters to you: «entier», plain «foie gras» or «bloc» on a jar are three different products in law, from a whole liver to a reconstituted mass.