Yes, foie gras is banned in more than two dozen countries, in the state of California, and on the books in New York City, where a sales ban was upheld on appeal in March 2026 but is not yet being enforced. Almost every one of these laws targets the force-feeding method used to fatten the bird’s liver, not the finished product, which creates a narrow but real legal opening for naturally produced versions and for personal orders shipped across state lines.
Where Foie Gras Is Banned in the United States
California is the only U.S. state with an active ban. The legislature passed SB 1520 in 2004 and gave producers an eight-year grace period before the law took effect on July 1, 2012. The statute prohibits selling any product in California that results from force-feeding a bird to enlarge its liver beyond normal size.1California Legislative Information. California Code, HSC 25982
Enforcement is civil. A peace officer, humane society officer, or animal control official can issue a citation, and the penalty runs up to $1,000 per violation plus another $1,000 for each day it continues.2California Legislative Information. SB 1520 Senate Bill – Bill Analysis County district attorneys, city attorneys, and the state Attorney General can all prosecute. The ban has survived every challenge. A Quebec producers’ association argued it interfered with interstate and international commerce; the Ninth Circuit rejected that argument, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case.3United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Association Des Eleveurs De Canards Et D’Oies Du Quebec v. Harris
New York City passed Local Law 202 in 2019, banning the sale of foie gras produced through force-feeding. It was supposed to take effect in 2022, but upstate duck farmers and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets challenged it. A trial court sided with the farmers. In March 2026, the Appellate Division Third Department reversed, ruling that the city does have authority to ban foie gras sales within its borders. The city has said it will not begin enforcement until the ruling is “final and nonappealable,” meaning the state could still appeal to New York’s highest court. The ban exists on the books but is not currently enforced.
Chicago is often mentioned in this context and shouldn’t be. The City Council banned foie gras in 2006, making Chicago the first U.S. city to do so, then repealed the ban in 2008 by a 37 to 6 vote.4Encyclopedia Britannica. Foie Gras: Too High a Price? Foie gras has been sold freely there ever since.
Three more U.S. cities may act soon. In Washington, D.C., Pro-Animal Future is working to place the “Prohibiting Force-Feeding of Birds Act” on the November 2026 ballot; the D.C. Board of Elections has approved the initiative to move forward, and the group now needs signatures from 5 percent of registered voters across at least five wards. If it passes, the ban would take effect July 1, 2027, with fines of $1,000 to $5,000 per violation and possible license suspension for repeat offenders. The same group is pursuing ballot measures in Denver and, later, Portland.
Where Foie Gras Is Banned Internationally
Most countries that effectively ban foie gras do so by prohibiting force-feeding under general animal welfare laws, not by naming the product. The practical result is the same: only France, Hungary, and Bulgaria account for nearly all global production.
In Europe, Germany banned force-feeding in 1972, Norway in 1974, and the United Kingdom in 2006 under its Animal Welfare Act. Denmark, Finland, Poland, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Ireland, and Croatia all prohibit force-feeding through their animal welfare statutes. Austria bans it in most provinces. Malta banned foie gras production (along with fur farming) in 2022. Switzerland bans production but continues to import. The European Union’s farming directive requires that animals not be fed in ways that cause unnecessary suffering, but enforcement is left to member states, and France, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Spain have carved out exceptions for their industries.
Outside Europe, Israel’s Supreme Court ruled in 2003 that force-feeding violated the country’s animal cruelty laws, with the ban taking full effect in March 2005; Israel had been one of the world’s largest producers before the ruling. Argentina and Australia prohibit production but allow imports. India bans imports outright, making it one of the few places where foie gras is essentially unavailable through legal commercial channels.
What These Bans Actually Prohibit
The method, not the food, is what the law objects to. Production uses a process called gavage: a tube is inserted down the throat of a duck or goose, and grain and fat are pumped in multiple times a day. Over about two weeks, the bird’s liver swells with fat to as much as ten times its normal size. The condition is hepatic lipidosis, a disease state rather than a natural variation.5The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). Scientists and Experts on Force-Feeding for Duck and Goose Welfare Because the laws target force-feeding, a product’s legality often turns on how it was made, not on what it is.
Can Californians Still Buy Foie Gras?
For personal use, yes. In 2022, the Ninth Circuit upheld a lower court ruling that California residents can order foie gras directly from out-of-state producers and have it shipped to them through a third-party delivery service. The court was clear that this is a narrow exception for end-use consumers buying for themselves. It does not cover resale, and it does not let a California restaurant or retailer put foie gras on the menu or the shelf. A home cook ordering online from a producer in another state is on legal ground; a restaurant doing the same thing is not.
Is Force-Free Foie Gras Legal?
Generally, yes, under the laws currently on the books. California’s statute reaches products that result from “force feeding a bird for the purpose of enlarging the bird’s liver beyond normal size.”1California Legislative Information. California Code, HSC 25982 A liver fattened through a bird’s natural pre-migration feeding, with no tube involved, would not appear to fall within that prohibition. A small number of producers now market “ethical” or “natural” foie gras from free-range birds that overeat on their own. The product is seasonal, more expensive, and smaller in scale than conventional foie gras. No jurisdiction has yet moved to ban fattened duck or goose liver regardless of how it was produced, so the legal exposure sits with the method rather than the ingredient.