Today, a federal judge in White Plains, N.Y. will hear arguments in a lawsuit against one of the Hudson Valley region's most notorious factory farms. The defendant Hudson Valley Foie Gras confines hundreds of thousands of ducks for foie gras production, and generates more than 45 million pounds of manure and slaughter waste every year.

The case was filed by The Humane Society of the United States in September 2006. It seeks to halt illegal discharges from Hudson Valley Foie Gras and require the facility to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal penalties.

"Hudson Valley's cruel force feeding operation has violated federal water pollution laws more than 1,000 times in the past five years," said Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of Animal Protection Litigation for The HSUS. "If this facility cannot operate in compliance with federal pollution laws, it should not be operating at all."

Facts:

• Hudson Valley Foie Gras raises and slaughters ducks to produce the controversial French "delicacy" foie gras. Birds are force-fed an unnatural amount of food through a pipe thrust down their throats until their livers expand to ten or more times their natural size. This process not only results in extreme suffering for the birds, it also produces a significant amount of waste—including manure and slaughter waste.
• The facility has discharged pollution into the Middle Mongaup River, a tributary to the Delaware River, which is popular for recreation and provides vital wildlife habitat. Pollution released by the facility has reached levels 300 percent of that permitted under state and federal law.
• Chicago, California, and more than a dozen countries—including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Israel, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland—have taken legislative action on the issue of foie gras and cruel force-feeding practices. Religious leaders, including the Pope, have condemned it.
• A 2004 Zogby poll showed that 77 percent of Americans believe the practice of force-feeding ducks and geese for foie gras should be banned.

Timeline:

• November 2007— The HSUS and other organizations file a legal petition asking the USDA to declare foie gras a diseased product unfit for human consumption.
• March 2007—Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck announces that he will no longer use foie gras.
• February 2007—New York issues a $30,000 penalty against Hudson Valley Foie Gras for violating state environmental law more than 900 times.
• November 2006—The HSUS and other organizations file suit against New York State to prohibit the production and sale of foie gras as an adulterated food product.
• September 2006—The HSUS files a lawsuit seeking to halt illegal discharges from Hudson Valley Foie Gras and require the facility to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in penalties.
• August 2006—The HSUS sues the state for granting a $420,000 subsidy for expansion of Hudson Valley Foie Gras' operations.
• April 2006—The Chicago City Council overwhelmingly passes an ordinance by a vote of 48-1 banning the sale of foie gras within the city, effective August 2006.
• August 2004—California bans the production and sale of foie gras, effective 2012.

For more information on foie gras production, visit The HSUS' website (http://www.hsus.org/farm/camp/ffa/foie_gras.html).

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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization—backed by 10 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty—on the web at humanesociety.org.