France to Vaccinate 64M Ducks to Protect and Preserve Its Beloved Foie Gras

Beloved foie gras in France prompts the country to embark on a massive vaccination campaign to protect the delicacy. The New York Times reports that the initiative began on Monday, aiming to safeguard the ducks from Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Reuters states that ducks are particularly susceptible to this disease, which has resulted in the culling of approximately 30 million birds in France over the past three years and has forced farmers to reduce the bird population on their farms due to safety concerns. Consequently, foie gras production suffered a 35% decrease last year. Farms currently housing more than 250 ducks will be required to vaccinate their birds, twice.

In what France’s foie gras federation refers to as “a real technical and financial challenge,” newly hatched chicks will receive their first vaccine dose ten days after birth, followed by a second dose eight days later. “We are committed to protecting the animals,” says Marie Pierre Pé, director of the federation, as reported by the Times. The article notes that the delicacy is produced by force-feeding ducks and geese and extracting their livers. DW highlights that the vaccination campaign will cost $102 million, with the government covering 85% of the expenses. This amount is significantly less than the compensation the government had to pay to farmers who had to cull their birds in 2021 and 2022.

This vaccination campaign is the first of its kind in the European Union, resulting in the US Agriculture Department’s decision to restrict the importation of ducks and other poultry from Europe. The USDA explains their reasoning in a press release: “Vaccinated birds may not show signs of HPAI infection, which could lead to the export of infected live animals or virus-contaminated products to the United States.” (Read more ducks stories.)