DC Voters could ban Foie Gras as Animal Welfare Group Launches Signature Drive

Washington, DC · A DC-based animal rights organization is pushing to place a foie gras ban on the 2026 ballot, collecting signatures from voters who want to end a production process critics call one of the most inhumane in the food industry.

Pro-Animal DC is coordinating a signature-gathering campaign to place a life-saving bill on Washington DC’s 2026 ballot. The group must collect 24,000 voter signatures to advance the measure to a public vote — and ultimately, into law. Notably, signature gatherers are not required to be DC residents or registered voters themselves.

At the center of the campaign is the production of foie gras — a luxury pâté made from the grotesquely enlarged liver of a duck or goose. The delicacy, long prized in French cuisine and high-end restaurants, is produced through a process called gavage, a French term meaning “force-feeding.”

What is gavage?

During gavage, metal or rubber pipes are inserted down the throats of ducks or geese up to three times daily, pumping large quantities of grain directly into their stomachs. The process is designed to rapidly fatten the birds’ livers — the organ that becomes foie gras — to a size many times beyond what would occur naturally.

The consequences for the birds are severe. According to animal welfare advocates, the force-feeding causes livers to swell to up to ten times their normal size, a condition known as hepatic steatosis — essentially, induced fatty liver disease. The engorged livers distend the birds’ abdomens, making it difficult or impossible for many to stand or walk normally.

The psychological toll is also significant. Birds subjected to gavage have been observed tearing out their own feathers and attacking one another — behaviors associated with extreme stress and confinement. Critics argue these are signs of animals pushed beyond the limits of their natural physiology.

Foie gras has already been banned or restricted in several US states and countries around the world, including California and New York City at various points, as well as the United Kingdom, Germany, and India. Supporters of the DC ballot measure hope the nation’s capital will be next.

If the signature threshold is met, DC residents will have the opportunity to vote directly on whether to prohibit the sale and production of foie gras within the district.

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Wayne Creed

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