Japan, a top export market for foie gras, banned imports from France last December after the H5N1 strain was detected on 69 farms in southwestern France. As a result of the fresh outbreak, France will be unable to "recover, as anticipated, its status as (a country) free of bird flu" on Saturday, the ministry said in a statement. It said migratory birds were the likely source of the outbreak, which affected 2,000 of the Tarn farm's 5,000 ducks. Foie gras has become a battleground between animals rights campaigners and defenders of France's gourmet traditions. Force-feeding -- known as "gavage" in France -- of geese and ducks to produce foie gras (fatty liver) has been banned in several countries but is legal in France.

Source: The Nation Bangkok December 02, 2016 11:52 UTC