Top London chef Richard Corrigan, who owns Corrigan’s and Bentley’s restaurant in Mayfair, says he has become more particular about where he sources Red Grouse for his menu.
In an article in The Guardian yesterday, he tells journalist Helena Horton that he now refuses to buy from large estates, and also refuses to buy from any estate that has been associated with raptor persecution.
Here are some of his quotes:
“We now insist [birds] come from small estates rather than the large shoots, where dozens are shot at a time. I am not too sure I agree with the large shoots. I would rather people shoot wild animals for the table rather than shoot for the sake of having a day out“
and
“Something that has really annoyed me is the killing of raptor birds on the estates. They are being poisoned by people on these estates. I would never buy grouse from those estates. We all know who they are“
and
“I was brought up in moorland, I am very aware of the heather and the turf, they need the wetlands to be restored to keep the moors in good shape. Some estates have taken it all a bit too far and have turned it into factory grouse shooting operations“.
I applaud Richard Corrigan’s ethical stance, although I wonder if it stretches to include birds shot with poisonous lead ammunition. It certainly doesn’t stretch to other obscenities – his menu still includes Foie gras. But we have to start somewhere, and he’s the first chef that I’m aware of who is prepared to publicly call out the grouse shooting industry. Good for him.
The Guardian article also includes quotes from Ariane Burgess MSP from the Scottish Greens, which appears to be the only mainstream political party calling for moorlands to be restored for people, wildlife and the climate, ‘not managed as a playground for bloodsports’ (see here).
Raptor Persecution UK 