These intelligent, gentle birds are condemned to spend the last weeks of their life in small, barren pens, where they are forced to stand 24 hours a day on metal grating as their urine and faeces build up underneath. The geese panic and struggle as they are roughly grabbed by the throat and a metal pipe is forced down their throats so that huge amounts of grain can be pumped into their stomachs. This cruel process happens three to four times a day – every day. Their distended livers – which can swell to up to 10 times their normal size – press against their lungs, causing them to pant constantly. Some of the birds can no longer stand because their legs can't support the weight of their livers, resulting in possible leg fractures.

Veterinarians and avian experts agree – there is no way to humanely produce foie gras. We do not want a local restaurant supporting a product so vile that its production is outlawed in the UK and many other countries.