Ex-Bond calls for foie gras ban

Updated 12.07 Thu May 31 2007
Keywords: fois gras, Roger Moore, Peta

Sir Roger Moore is supporting a campaign to ban the sale of foie gras in the UK.

The former Bond star has written to MPs describing the "cruel" process used to produce the food, and urges them to support the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals' (Peta) campaign.

The former Bond star has written to MPs describing the "cruel" process used to produce the food

The letter, which was sent with a DVD that shows undercover footage of foie gras farms, also asks MPs to sign an Early Day Motion which calls for a ban.

The EDM, tabled in March by Labour MP Hugh Bayley, says: "In order to produce the food delicacy foie gras, 12-week-old ducks and geese are restrained and grain is forced down the throat through a gavage pipe, a process that often results in physical injury.."

This process makes birds' livers swell to between six and ten times their normal size, the EDM adds.

Sir Roger said in his letter: "I wholeheartedly support this (Peta's) campaign, and with your help I believe that we will soon see an end to this brutal and inherently cruel 'delicacy'."

Earlier this year, animal welfare minister Ben Bradshaw said foie gras could not be banned in the UK due to EU laws, but a public boycott could help put a stop to it.

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