The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on May 6 rejected a challenge to California’s ban on foie gras. A three-judge panel of the court ruled by a 2-1 margin that the foie gras ban was not pre-empted by federal law and did not violate the dormant Commerce Clause of the US Constitution. The statute provides that a product may not be sold in California “if it is the result of force feeding a bird for the purpose of enlarging the bird’s liver beyond normal size.” The panel found that the plaintiffs in the case had not shown any cognizable burden on interstate commerce resulting from the law and also found that the state has an interest in public health and in preventing animal cruelty. The panel also upheld the district court’s ruling that the ban should be read as applying to sales in the state but not to online, phone and fax sales from out of state to California buyers.
Source: https://www.dlapiper.com/en/us/insights/publications/2022/05/food-beverage-news-trends-may-19/
