Geese are highly intelligent, socially complex migratory birds. Their use in intensive farming for meat, liver, and down raises significant welfare questions about confinement, foie gras production, and live plucking practices.
Goose welfare in intensive production is compromised by confinement, live plucking, and force-feeding. Live plucking — removing feathers while the bird is alive — causes acute pain and behavioral distress. Feathers pulled from live birds leave follicle wounds that are painful until healed. This practice is banned in the EU but persists illegally and in non-EU countries supplying the global down market. Foie gras production through gavage causes liver pathology and difficulty breathing. Even standard goose meat production at high densities denies these intelligent, wide-ranging birds the movement and social complexity they need. Consumer demand for certified down and rejection of foie gras are the most effective individual actions.