How to Raise Foie Gras Geese: Tips on Choosing Breeds and Feed

Goose foie gras has a fine, tender texture and a delicious flavor. It is 4 to 10 times larger than a normal goose liver and contains large amounts of unsaturated fatty acids and various vitamins that are beneficial to human health, making it a precious high-calorie food. On the international market, it is one of the most precious and best-selling nutritional products, attracting consumers in all wealthy countries and regions, with very broad market prospects. So, how do you raise foie gras geese? What breeds and feed are better to choose?

What breed should you choose for raising foie gras geese?

Breed is one of the important factors affecting foie gras production. The foie gras performance of different goose breeds varies greatly, and not all geese can produce foie gras. For example, China's small goose breeds are mainly egg layers and have very poor foie gras performance, so they are not suitable for foie gras production.

Those that can be used for foie gras production include:

Large goose breeds such as the Lion Head Goose, with an average foie gras weight of 600 grams and a maximum of 1400 grams; the world-famous foie gras specialty breed, the French Landaise Goose, has an average foie gras weight of 836 grams and a maximum of 1780 grams.

Although the above large geese have relatively good liver production performance, their reproductive performance is very poor. Therefore, using heterosis to breed high-yield lines for combined meat, liver and feather production is an effective method to improve the level of foie gras production.

So to produce goose foie gras, in addition to choosing foie gras specialty breeds, you should purchase high-yield lines bred through crossbreeding for foie gras production from breeding goose farms.

What feed is used for producing foie gras geese?

Research has proven that corn is the most ideal high-energy feed. Analysis found that each kilogram of corn contains about 400 mg of choline and 0.25% phosphorus, both lower than other high-energy feeds. This is because choline has the function of maintaining normal liver function in animals, helps transfer fat in the liver, prevents excessive fat deposition in the liver, and protects the liver.

Therefore, the higher the choline content in the feed, the better it can prevent fat accumulation in the liver from affecting the fattening effect. In addition, because corn has low choline content and poor liver protection ability, fat is more likely to deposit and form fatty liver.

So when corn is used as the force-feeding feed for foie gras, the average foie gras weight is increased by 20%—45% compared with any other high-energy feed, making it the preferred feed for foie gras production at home and abroad at present.

When using corn as force-feeding feed, use corn kernels rather than crushed corn, because crushed corn has many gaps and a large volume, which affects the filling amount. In order to increase the filling amount and increase foie gras weight, corn kernels must be used in terms of feed form.

There are 3 methods for processing corn kernels, namely boiling, dry frying and soaking.

Comparing the 3 methods, boiling is the most suitable. Pour selected dry corn (preferably smaller kernels) into a pot of boiling water so that the water level is 10 cm above the corn, boil for 8 minutes, scoop out and drain, and while hot mix in 2% animal fat, add 0.5% salt, 0.02% multivitamins and an appropriate amount of trace element additives, and mix thoroughly with the corn.

How should foie gras geese be raised and managed?

Feeding and management during the pre-feeding period

Before force-feeding, the geese must go through 2—3 weeks of pre-feeding. Through pre-feeding, the geese can further grow and develop, strengthen their constitution, increase foie gras uniformity, and improve foie gras quality. At the same time, pre-feeding exercises the geese's digestive ability, allowing them to consume large amounts of feed so that the digestive tract expands and softens, enabling it to bear large amounts of feed during forced feeding.

In the early pre-feeding period, a complete compound feed can be given. After 10 days, gradually reduce the compound feed in the daily ration and increase the corn kernel content. In the late pre-feeding period, basically feed corn kernels to adapt them to the all-corn-kernel filling during the force-feeding period. It should be emphasized here that during the pre-feeding period, as much green feed as possible should be fed to increase the capacity of the digestive tract.

Before pre-feeding begins, the geese should be vaccinated and dewormed and kept indoors, and can be grazed once in the morning and once in the afternoon each day. The goose house should be clean, flat, dry and quiet. Raise 2—2.5 birds per square meter of floor area, with sufficient and clean water supply. Grazing should be stopped 3 days before the end of the pre-feeding period.

Feeding and management during the force-feeding period

Feeding and management during the force-feeding period is one of the most critical links in the goose foie gras production process. The force-feeding technique, the control of the amount fed each time, and the length of the force-feeding period will all affect the quality and weight gain of the foie gras to different degrees.

Before force-feeding, first place the geese in specially made feeding cages. Depending on the cage specifications, generally 5—6 birds per cage, use a specially made force-feeding machine for feeding. Feed 4 times a day, namely at 8 o'clock, 14 o'clock, 20 o'clock and 2 o'clock. The filling amount can be flexibly controlled according to breed and size. Insufficient filling amount affects foie gras weight gain, while excessive filling amount easily causes feed retention and produces substandard birds. Therefore, before each feeding, feel the crop. If the feed has been fully digested, it means digestive ability is good, and the filling amount can be increased next time.

However, the throat and esophagus of geese are relatively narrow. When inserting the tube, in addition to coating the tube with oil, special care must be taken to prevent injuring the esophagus. After the tube is inserted into the esophagus, fix the head and beak with the left hand, step on the starter once, and the corn kernels will advance toward the crop with the rotation of the screw pusher. The feeder uses the right hand to gently push the corn kernels downward, then steps on the starter again and pushes the corn kernels again, until filling is complete.

Generally speaking, the force-feeding period is about 3 weeks, with the specific time depending on the geese's condition.

If force-fed geese have dull eyes, listlessness, rapid breathing, wet and messy feathers, an obese body, a sagging abdomen, are unwilling to move, or even become paralyzed, and show symptoms of indigestion such as feed retention and diarrhea, it means the foie gras is already mature and the geese should be slaughtered promptly to take the liver.

At present, high-quality foie gras sells for as much as 40 US dollars per kilogram on the international market. Europeans especially love to eat it, but in recent years the supply of foie gras geese has been insufficient. Developing goose foie gras production can not only increase goose meat output and meet the needs of the domestic market, but also earn foreign exchange through exports, improve breeding efficiency, and has promising development prospects.

However, in the breeding process, the force-feeding technique, the control of the amount fed each time, and the length of the force-feeding period will all affect the quality and weight gain of the foie gras to different degrees. Therefore, farmers need to pay more attention to these aspects.