You can find it at fine French restaurants like here at Bistro Pierre Lapin in New York City.

在高級法餐可以找到它們的蹤影，像是這間位於紐約市的 Bistro Pierre Lapin (餐酒館)。

And a single appetizer can cost as much as your main course at your average diner.

一道開胃菜的價錢可以和一般餐館的主餐價格不分上下。

I have to forecast for when we're making the terrines.

我必須預告說我們正在準備風味冷盤。

That's eight pounds of foie gras. That's 250 bucks.

所用食材是八磅的肥肝，相當於 250 美元。

So why's foie gras so expensive?

所以，到底為何肥肝醬這麼貴？

First of all, ducks and geese are expensive to raise.

第一，鴨和鵝的飼養成本很高。

Compared to chickens, they take up to two and a half times longer to mature.

和雞相比，牠們需要 2.5 倍的時間才能長大成熟。

The capital investment for a foie gras farm for the output is at least two and a half times greater than that for a chicken farm.

肥肝農場投入的資本是養雞場的 2.5 倍。

And then there's force-feeding, the process that fattens up the liver.

還有強迫餵食，為了養肥肝臟的過程。

The duck is raised as a normal duck.

鴨子按照正常的方式飼養。

And then for the last two weeks about of its life, two to three weeks, depending on the farm, is force-fed corn and grain through a metal tube a couple of times a day.

每家農場做法各異，在鴨子生命最後的兩或三週，牠們會被迫用一根金屬管餵食玉米、穀物，一天進行好幾次。

It requires a ton of feed, as much as four pounds each day, which grows the liver up to 10 times its normal size.

餵食的過程會消耗掉非常多的飼料，也就是一隻鴨或鵝平均一天需要吃到四磅才能讓肝臟比正常尺寸大上十倍。

Plus, it requires a lot of time.

另外，也須耗費大量時間。

During that period of time, you have an enormous, enormous input of labor.

這段時間，你需要投入大量勞動力。

And costs of labor to grow and produce the finished product.

還有勞動成本才能得到成品。

But it's hard to deny that foie gras is also costly, well, because it's so controversial.

然而難以否認的是，肥肝之所以如此昂貴，是因為其也具有爭議性。

Animal activists say that foie gras is one of the most inhumane meats out there.

動物保護主義者認為肥肝是全世界最不人道的肉品之一。

And while farmers and some chefs disagree --.

但農夫與部分主廚否認該事實--。

No one is abusing animals at a foie gras farm.

在肥肝農場，沒有人虐待動物。

The moral debate has put pressure on supply, especially in the US.

特別是美國，道德爭議對供應源施壓。

In fact, there're only three foie gras farms across the entire country, and it doesn't look like there'll be more anytime soon.

事實上，全美只有三家肥肝農場，近期內似乎也不會再新增。

Nobody in their right mind would open a foie gras farm.

擁有正常心態的人都不會開肥肝農場。

Somebody tried to open a farm in Indiana about a decade ago and quickly decided that they couldn't handle the political aspect of it.

約莫十年前，有人嘗試在印地安那州開農場，結果很快就放棄了此計畫，因為他們無法處理政治考量。

In early 2019, the Supreme Court upheld a foie gras ban in California, which went into effect in 2012.

2019 年初，最高法院支持加州的禁「肝」令，此禁令於 2012 年就生效。

And even in the European Union, which produces 90% of the world's foie gras, around a dozen countries prohibit force-feeding.

即便是生產全世界 90% 肥肝的歐盟，其中也有約 12 個國家禁止強迫餵食。

Taken all together, that's why a pound of foie gras can cost as much as $90.

總結以上幾點，這就是為何一磅的肥肝可以要價 90 美元了。

And that's well before it makes it to the plate.

這還是處理上桌前的價格。

Foie gras requires skill to prepare.

處理肥肝醬需要技術。

The thing is with foie gras, is that you need to be taught how to handle it.

肥肝醬有個特性：你必須得到指導才知道怎麼處理。

And skilled chefs like Harold tend to run pricey restaurants.

像是 Harold 這般有技術的主廚，傾向於經營昂貴的餐廳。

Yet another reason why foie gras is so expensive.

這也是另一個肥肝醬昂貴的原因。

But still, people are willing to pay the price.

但大家仍願意為此掏腰包。

People love it, like they love, love, love it.

大家都很愛，簡直愛死了。

That cannot be duplicated in any other way, a texture that is very special.

口感之特別，任何東西都無法複製出其口感。

So while foie gras may be controversial, it's unlikely to be kicked off the menu anytime soon.

所以，即使肥肝醬有爭議性，近期內在菜單上的蹤影仍不會消失。