A French farmers' co-operative is to produce pâté de foie gras in China for the first time after buying a duck farm in Yangquing, near Beijing.

Euralis, the world leader in the delicacy made from the livers of force-fed geese and ducks, hopes to profit from the exotic tastes of wealthy Chinese.

Michel Depierre, director-general of Euralis, said: “It's the very beginnings of the market.” The new venture will initially produce only 25 tonnes of foie gras from ducks fed by local Chinese under the supervision of French staff.

“It is a market that will develop in hotels and restaurants,” Mr Depierre said. “There is a percentage of the population that has a lot of money.”

Euralis has chosen to produce foie gras from ducks, rather than geese, because of the Chinese preference for duck meat. Euralis, which owns such famous foie gras brands as Rougie-Bizac and Montfort, is already exporting foie gras to Japan, but restrictions on imports of raw food products prevent the French co-operative from exporting foie gras directly to China.

Euralis, based in southwest France, is the biggest producer of foie gras and the delicacy generates €408million (£304million) in revenue for the company, about 40 per cent of its business.

It started with a collection of arable farmers, who combined forces to find markets for wheat. Today, it has a large seeds business and is investing heavily in food manufacturing, as well. It also produces 180,000 tonnes of bioethanol.

Euralis is at odds with the French Government and much of French popular opinion over genetically modified foods, on which it regrets the “confused” stance of the Government.

It produces conventional seeds, but could move to genetically modified organisms after a year's notice.

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