Committee rebriefs foie gras bill; substitute would require free‑feeding certification administered by Department of Agriculture

Summary

Committee staff briefed substitute language for House Bill 1735, which would prohibit force-feeding birds and forbid sale of foie gras produced by force-feeding; the proposed substitute authorizes the Department of Agriculture to administer prohibitions and requires sellers to certify product was produced using free feeding.

The committee received a staff briefing on House Bill 1735 — a bill previously heard that would prohibit force-feeding birds and ban the sale and distribution of foie gras produced using force-feeding.

Rebecca Lewis, committee staff, told members there is a proposed substitute (draft H1402.1) offered by Representative Springer. The proposed substitute would authorize the director of the Department of Agriculture to administer the prohibitions and associated civil penalties and would require anyone selling foie gras to certify with the Department that the product was produced using "free feeding." Lewis explained that "free feeding" is defined in the substitute as providing unrestricted access to species-appropriate food and allowing the bird to feed voluntarily.

The committee deferred final action on HB 1735 to allow additional floor and committee amendment work, and staff said they were available to respond to questions. No committee vote occurred during the Feb. 14 meeting; members were advised the proposed substitute language is in the committee materials and available for further review.