foie gras: As China gorges on homegrown foie gras, France faces a new rival
Over the past 10 years in China, foie gras, the fatty livers of force-fed ducks or geese, has transformed from a high-end delicacy to a popular affordable product, encouraging farmers like Li to become even more ambitious.
His company, Changhao Biotechnology, a medium-sized foie gras producer, produced 300 metric tons last year and plans to make a big jump to 500 tons this year. The average French producer, by contrast, produces around 10 tons per year.
Although barriers to export (particularly China’s own customs rules) remain numerous, Li has begun to push into overseas markets, sending 6,000 boxes to Dubai last year.
Domestic farmers say China’s massive increase in production, much cheaper costs and prices, as well as rising worldwide demand for the product, means it is only a matter of time before exports increase.
“Our foie gras agricultural products will eventually appear on many foreign tables. This is inevitable,” Li said.
CHINA MAY SOON BECOME THE WORLD’S LARGEST MANUFACTURER
Chinese foie gras fried rice is like dipping raw slices into hot pot. Newer items such as frozen cherries and rose-shaped foie gras desserts dipped in red wine and blueberry sauce are also popular.
And the price of a slice in a restaurant in China ranges from 30 yuan to 70 yuan ($4 to $10); This is much cheaper than the €15 to €40 ($17 to $46) price at a restaurant in France.
China’s love of foie gras is so intense that some industry analysts and participants expect China to become the world’s largest producer soon, perhaps next year or even this year.
China’s foie gras production may have reached as much as 14,000 tonnes last year, according to previously unreported estimates from five China-based industry analysts.
This represents a roughly 30% jump from 2024 and compares with forecasts of just 2,000 tonnes a decade ago. Production in France, the world’s leading producer, decreased by 3% last year to 15,044 tons.
“It’s worrying that they’re developing so quickly,” said Fabien Chevalier, president of the French foie gras industry group CIFOG. “We didn’t see them coming like that.”
France and China together account for more than 80% of global production; Hungary and Bulgaria also earn significant amounts.
EXPORT AGREEMENTS ARE EMERGING
Less than 5% of Chinese production was exported last year, according to customs data and analysts’ estimates. Strict rules imposed by Chinese customs, which require farmers to prove that poultry is free of nearly 300 chemicals after vaccination, make exporting a daunting task.
However, Chinese manufacturers want to try their hand at it, knowing that much more attractive profit margins await them abroad if they pass the many necessary regulatory stages.
Some export agreements began to emerge.
General Manager Min Wei said that Jilin Zhengfang Agriculture and Livestock, China’s largest duck foie gras producer with an annual production of 1,500 tons, is preparing to export to Southeast Asia and Europe this year.
Leading foie gras producer Shandong Chunguan Food told state media in May that it had signed a contract to export to South Korea and was working with companies in Japan, Russia and Southeast Asia to ship to those markets. The company declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.
“China will definitely be a strong rival to France in some overseas markets, especially in promising foie gras markets such as Southeast Asia and the Middle East,” said Zhou Menghan, a poultry analyst at Beijing Orient Agribusiness Consultants.
CIFOG’s Chevalier said several Chinese manufacturers have begun appearing at international trade fairs and their products may find a home in Southeast Asia.
“We will have to be careful about what they plan to bring to market,” he said.
But he added that European markets are tightly regulated and he expects consumers to favor products such as those bearing the “foie gras du Sud-Ouest” label, which guarantees the birds were raised to local nutritional standards in southwestern France.
BIGGER LIVERS BUT HARD WORK
China’s rising production is partly due to generous subsidies. In Li’s case, they cover more than 50% of the infrastructure and vaccine costs. But he says he also credits a lot to the work ethic that led to bigger livers.
Each member of their team is responsible for caring for more than 400 geese from hatching to slaughter, and for the last 10 days of the birds’ 100-day life, they work day and night with little sleep to force-feed each of them six daily meals.
“Europeans can’t raise large numbers of geese anymore because it’s hard work,” he said, as his wife proudly displayed her 2.9 kilogram (6.4 pound) liver.
Farm foie gras weighs at least 1 kg (2.2 pounds). In France, where most foie gras is made from duck, typical livers weigh 500 to 550 grams (1.1 to 1.2 pounds), while foie gras usually weighs under 750 grams (1.7 pounds). Li adds that he is in talks with robotics companies to develop robots that can handle intense nutrition schedules better than humans.
Foie gras has long been a controversial topic; animal welfare activists argue that force-feeding, which often occurs in cages, is inhumane. However, many in the industry argue that ducks and geese do not have a gag reflex, meaning inserting a feeding tube is not as stressful as it would be for a human.
Chinese producers are dismissive of claims that animal welfare concerns could hinder growth. They say there is little opposition in China, and worldwide demand for foie gras is only increasing.
Evidence of this is significant smuggling of Chinese foie gras to other countries via Shenzhen and Hong Kong to bypass Chinese customs rules, said four sources who declined to be named discussing the illegal practice.
They added that smuggling of foie gras disguised as or mixed with other products can reach up to 10 tons per month.
China’s agriculture ministry and customs officials did not respond to Reuters requests for comment on the smuggling.
