Take Action for Ducks and Geese

Contact the Minister of Agriculture, The Honourable Gerry Ritz and demand a national ban on foie gras production.

Write to:

The Honourable Gerry Ritz
Minister, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Tel: (613) 995-7080
Fax: (613) 996-8472
Email: Ritz.G@parl.gc.ca

Sample Letter

Subject: Legislation banning foie gras production in Canada.

Dear Minister Ritz,

I am writing to urge you to legislate a ban on the production of fois gras in Canada. In this cruel practice birds are kept in wire cages, barely larger than their bodies, where they cannot even turn around or spread their wings. Metal pipes are crammed down the birds throats, forcing huge amounts of food into them in seconds. The birds suffer tremendously during and after the force-feeding process. The excessive overfeeding causes their livers to become diseased and quickly swell up to ten times their normal size. This force-feeding can also cause painful bruising, lacerations and sores. They often die when the metal feeding tubes puncture their necks, when their stomachs literally "burst", or when force-feeding overfills them to the point of suffocation. In Canada, half a million birds are killed for foie gras each year.

Due to animal welfare concerns, more than a dozen countries—including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Israel (formerly the world's fourth-largest foie gras producing nation), Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland—have prohibited the production of foie gras. It is time for Canada to join the ranks as a country who will not tolerate this inhumane practice. Please support legislation banning foie gras production in Canada.

Thank you for your consideration of this important matter.

Yours truly,

[your name, your city]