York, Maine - Exhibiting the warmth and compassion that Mainers are known for, there is one epicurean product that Stonewall Kitchen, York's own gourmet and specialty foods retailer will not sell. The company has removed foie gras from its web site and catalog because the cost is too high-to animals. After receiving a letter and video footage of force-fed ducks taken inside Sonoma Foie Gras in California and Hudson Valley Foie Gras in New York, the compassionate company decided to scrap the "delicacy."

Investigations on these foie gras farms, the only two in the U.S., revealed ducks crammed into filthy, feces-ridden sheds and barrels full of dead ducks who had choked or whose organs ruptured during the traumatic force-feeding process.

On foie gras farms in France, investigators witnessed female ducklings having their necks broken because the industry deems them unprofitable "trash." Investigators also documented thousands of birds intensively confined in cages so small that the ducks were unable to raise a wing, and birds suffering from diarrhea and vomiting after four pounds of corn mash is forcefully pumped down their throats.

To produce foie gras, workers shove rigid pipes into the birds' throats twice per day, every day. The ducks who survive the feedings suffer from a painful illness that causes their livers to swell up to five to ten times their normal size. The ducks' diseased livers are sold as foie gras.

The controversy surrounding foie gras production has become a hotly debated international issue. Although fewer than ten nations produce foie gras, at least fifteen nations including Israel and Germany have banned force-feeding because of its inherent cruelty. California recently passed a ban on the sale and production of foie gras from force-fed birds, and many U.S. restaurants, including Jardinière and Chapeau in San Francisco; Higgin's, Brasserie Montmartre, and the Heathman Hotel and Restaurant in Portland, Oregon; and many others have stated that they will no longer serve foie gras after learning of the cruelty behind it.

"By removing foie gras, Stonewall Kitchen is on the cutting edge of compassion," said Elliot M. Katz, DVM, president of IDA. "Anyone buying or selling foie gras is directly responsible for the suffering of these birds. We are hopeful that other caring companies and restaurants will follow their lead and spare ducks from cruel force-feeding."

For more information, please visit www.StopForceFeeding.com. Broadcast quality footage of Animal Protection and Rescue League's (APRL's) foie gras investigation available upon request.