Open Farm Days 2019 : Again a success for Belgian foie gras !

Each year, the Open Farm Days (Journées Fermes Ouvertes – JFO) are in Wallonia (Belgium) an opportunity for thousands of visitors, including the youngest, to discover several livestock farms. The 23rd edition of the JFO took place on June 22 and 23 with the participation of more than 70 farms, including 2 foie gras farms : the “ferme de la Sauvenière” (Hemptinne-Lez-Florennes) and the “ferme Louis Legrand” (Templeuve).

The two farms welcomed over 3,000 visitors during the weekend, including many young people : “Most of the parents came with their children. There were also a lot of young couples”, said Valérie Van Wynsberghe, foie gras producer at the “ferme de la Sauvenière”. For both farms, the JFO are an opportunity to show and explain the production of foie gras to a wide audience : outdoor farming of fat palmipeds, assisted feeding during the last 12 days of life, processing, manufacturing and sale of products on site. The public is every year very receptive : “People see our breeding, our integrated production and realize that it is good to stock up with artisans,” says Louis Legrand, from the eponymous farm. Visitors to “La Sauvenière” even had the pleasure of attending a chef’s demonstration and savoring pan-fried, cooked and half-cooked foie gras as well as duck breast. Now very familiar with the Belgian production of foie gras, many visitors have not failed to bring tasty preparations home.