The food blogs were all in a buzz yesterday about the possibility of a foie gras ban, similar to the one recently enacted in Chicago, being instituted here in New York. It seems that Councilman Alan Gerson was poised to introduce a ban today; Ariane Daugin of D'Artagnan, a prominent purveyor of foie based in New York, sent an email to her food-related contacts urging action. Jennifer Leuzzi posted the email in its entirety on Snack. In addition to providing contact information for the councilman, Daugin provided "proof points" in an attempt to educate readers about foie gras.
But panic among foie lovers subsided today as the New York Sun reported that Gerson has held off on proposing the ban, at least for now: "'I'm generally sympathetic to humane issues,' the city council member who was proposing the ban, Alan Gerson, said, 'but there are a lot of people on both sides of the issue.' Mr. Gerson said that a phone call he received from a constituent aided in his decision not to introduce the legislation." Could it be that Daugin's plea for support worked?
Chigagoans have not reacted well to the ban. One of our favorite NPR podcasts explores the day the ban was enacted, when restaurateurs protested by serving foie gras, even in dishes where it didn't quite work, like sitting atop a pizza. We'd wager that similar protests would occur here if a ban were enacted.
Photo of foie gras torchon courtesy of Megnut, winner of "battle foie gras" (sorry, Adam).
