Professionals Against Foie Gras

MatysonPollutes.com

Boycott LaCroix Restaurant in Philadelphia!

LaCroix Restaurant at the Rittenhouse Hotel bills itself as serving sophisticated French cuisine, yet there is little that is sophisticated about LaCroix’s funding the dumping of fecal coliform, phosphorus, chlorine and other pollutants directly into a tributary of the Delaware River. (1)

While much of the menu at LaCroix is comprised of fresh, local ingredients from family farms near the greater Philadelphia region, there is one major exception to this: the sale of Hudson Valley Foie Gras from upstate New York, a company that was recently fined by the state of New York for 800 violations of environmental law, including the discharge of manure-related pollutants and the installation of an unauthorized manure cesspool. (2)

While the majority of top-rated Philadelphia restaurants have cut foie gras out of the menu over the past few years, LaCroix continues to serve its customers Hudson Valley Foie Gras from the self-titled farm in New York. According to Delaware Riverkeeper, a Pennsylvania non-profit that works to fight pollution and degradation of the Delaware and its tributaries, Hudson Valley Foie Gras has violated the federal Clean Water Act almost every day since 2001, and continues to do so to this day. (3) The Humane Society of the United States, which filed suit against HVFG for its pollution, reports that a cocktail of chemicals flows from the facility's discharge pipe directly into the Middle Mongaup River, a tributary which leads directly into the Delaware River. The pollution primarily stems from the factory farm's slaughter plant waste, which contains animal feces, blood and entrails. Hudson Valley Foie Gras also discharges massive amounts of manure onto nearby fields which then runs off into the river. (4)

And its not just the environment that is at risk. The presence of fecal coliform in Hudson Valley Foie Gras's discharge indicates that water may be contaminated with fecal matter and microorganisms that cause human disease, posing a threat to any who use the river for recreational activities. (5)

LaCroix is one of the only restaurants in Philadelphia that still serves its customers Hudson Valley Foie Gras. Of course, the menu at LaCroix doesn’t list that each serving of foie gras comes with a side dish of environmental destruction. Plus, foie gras itself is the most cruelly produced food product in the world. It has already been banned in California, Chicago, and 16 countries around the world, and has been condemned by the Humane Society of the United States, the PA-SPCA, Philadelphia Mayor’s Alliance for Animals, even the Pope! A Zogby poll conducted last year showed that 85% of PA residents want foie gras banned locally.

Philadelphia is filled with great restaurants, many of whom have made a conscious decision to not support Hudson Valley Foie Gras, and not serve foie gras at all. If you’re looking for a place to dine out, please BOYCOTT LACROIX RESTAURANT until they do what’s right for the environment, for our health, and for animals, and take foie gras off the menu. Please encourage your friends, family and co-workers to Boycott LaCroix also!

Check out the link above to find dozens of other top-rated Philadelphia restaurants that – unlike LaCroix– have a concern for our local environment, as well as our health.

(1) - http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/newsresources/pressrelease.asp?ID=26
(2) - http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/2007/030607FoieGrasFine.html
(3) - http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/newsresources/factsheet.asp?ID=42
(4) - http://www.hsus.org/farm/news/ournews/delaware_riverkeeper_foie_gras_pollution.html
(5) - http://www.hsus.org/farm/news/ournews/delaware_riverkeeper_foie_gras_pollution.html