Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will set out the Government’s (a) roadmap and (b) timeframe for bringing forward legislative proposals to ban the (i) import and (ii) sale of foie gras made by force-feeding.

The Government has made clear that the production of foie gras from ducks or geese using force feeding raises serious welfare concerns. The production of foie gras by force feeding has been banned in the UK for over 15 years following the introduction of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. It is a legal requirement to provide for an animal’s welfare needs, such as supplying a suitable diet and protecting the animal from injury and disease. Under this legislation, it is a criminal offence to allow an animal to suffer unnecessarily, which clearly reflects the UK public’s attitudes to welfare standards.

Whilst a member of the EU, we were subject to rules regarding the movement of goods within the EU market. Now that our future relationship with the EU has been established, we are able to take further steps where there is clear evidence of low welfare standards. We are now considering any further steps that could be taken in relation to foie gras that is produced overseas using force feeding practices, such as restrictions on import and sale.

We are gathering information and will continue to speak to a range of interested parties about the issues involved. This is in line with the Government’s commitment to improving animal welfare standards as set out in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare which was published on 12 May, and will be used to inform any future action taken regarding foie gras produced from force feeding practices.