“France is the country of foie gras. It is a hallmark of French gastronomy. An American or Asian tourist visiting Paris will want to see the Eiffel Tower, the Elysées and eat foie gras.” The phrase It is from Fabien Chevalier, president of CIFOG, the French association of the industry dedicated to preparing the famous delicacy based on the liver of ducks and geese. And although what he says is true, Chevalier is also aware of something: French producers have faced a formidable rival 7,000 kilometers away, in the Chinese farms of Shandong and Anhui.
After all, foie gras may be associated with France, but some estimate that China has already become its second main producer.
Chinese foie gras? Exact. And there are more and more. Estimates of China’s production capacity do not always coincide, but the trend they show does: the Asian giant is producing more and more foie gras, a business it has launched into so decisively that it already stands out as one of its heavyweights. In fact, is closing distances with France.
The figures are clear. a few days ago The Wall Street Journal cited a report from the state-owned company China International Capital that suggests that domestic producers produce 11,000 tons a year, roughly 45% of global supply. The same headline cites a company that produces about 3,000 tons.
Is there more data? Yes. And they point in a similar direction. During an interview recently with RFI, Chevalier, who in addition to being president of the French employers’ association is responsible for the company Lafitteestimated that in 2024 12,000 tons of foie gras would leave Chinese farms. And he believes that the balance was even greater in 2025, unlike what happens in France, whose production fell 3%.
“Knowing that French production was around 15,000 t in 2025, Chinese production is quite significant,” acknowledges Chevalier. After consulting half a dozen analysts, Reuters calculate that Chinese production could reach 14,000 tons last year, seven times more than just a decade ago.
How is that possible? For a sum of factors. One of them is that the Chinese foie gras industry not only has the support of ranchers and businessmen. The State has also gotten involved to give it a boost. Reuters speaks of “generous subsidies” that, in the specific case of a goose farm located in eastern China, cover more than 50% of infrastructure and vaccines.
In addition to a new potential market, Beijing has seen foie gras as a lifeline for rural areas affected by the exodus to the cities, which explains that the Government have decided to support it through loans.
Is it the same foie gras? That is another of the keys that explain why the Chinese sector is growing so quickly. Chevalier explains that Chinese farms are betting “mainly” on geese, something that, he admits, fascinates him. “It is much more difficult to make foie gras from geese than from ducks.”
Whether for that reason or others, everything indicates that China has found a way to make its production as profitable as possible. If in France, where they work mainly with ducks, producers manage 500 g livers (or 700 if they opt for geese), in China those numbers skyrocket. There a liver can reach two kilos.
Is there that much difference? Reuters interviewed the manager of a farm in eastern China who claims that the pieces coming out of his pens weigh at least a kilo. In fact, he showed journalists a specimen weighing about 2.9 kg.
“Europeans can no longer raise a large number of geese because it is very hard work,” boasts the businessman, Li Fengshan, who explains that the ten days before the slaughter of the birds his employees work tirelessly, sleeping very little, to feed the geese with six meals a day.
The way birds are fattened to produce foie gras (ducks or geese) has generated a strong controversy in recent years and has given rise to accusations of animal crueltya controversy to which they are not foreign the Gallic farms.
Where does that foie gras go? Especially to the domestic market. At least for now the production of Chinese foie gras seems oriented basically to its own national market, although in the sector there are those who already expect that the weight of exports will grow in the future. Whether I achieve it or not, the reality is that in 2025 less than 5% of Chinese production was directed to external consumers.
It is not a surprising percentage if one takes into account the legislative restrictions, which begin in the Chinese customs themselves, and that there are local producers who are betting on products such as foie gras ice cream and with different flavors or shapes in an attempt to gain share in their own market.
The price plays in its favor: The Wall Street Journal interviewed recently a distributor in Macau that worked with European product that sold for $28 per pound, now deals with Chinese suppliers who sell it for $17.
Is it a unique case? No. This is not the first time that China has demonstrated its ability to gain a foothold in new sectors, even those in which European producers are well established. It has already happened in the wine sectorbut also with others such as the trade of truffles or caviar.
“For decades, among Western consumers, the ‘Made in China’ label was associated with cheap, low-quality and simple products,” remember Even Payby Trivium China. “In the last decade we have seen a lot of brands made in China with quality products at a lower price.”
Images | Martin Baron (Unsplash), Arthur Wang (Unsplash) and GOETZ Jean-Pierre (Unsplash)
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