A Flaunden village pub has been forced to remove a controversial dish from its menu after speculation mounted over methods used in its production.

Animal rights activists descended on The Bricklayers Arms, in Hogpits Bottom on Saturday, September 6, as part of a peaceful protest against the sale of foie gras.

Campaigners from Hertfordshire Animal Rights stood outside the main entrance to the pub from 6.15pm to 8.30pm while handing out leaflets and talking about the production of the dish, which was being sold for £14.95.

Foie gras production can involve the force-feeding of ducks and geese, usually through a tube around 20-30cm long, which forces feed into the animal’s body and this causes the bird’s liver to "fatten".

Alvin Michaels, owner of The Bricklayers Arms, confirmed the pub is to looking for foie gras producers who are not force-feeding ducks or geese and the pub hopes that it will eventually be able to put it back on the menu.

He said: "We have made contact with a Spanish company, whose main distribution centre is based in Paris.

"We are talking to them at the moment. There are products where the ducks and geese are free range and not force fed.

"There are some farms out there that do produce free range foie gras- we hope to get to one of those.

"Only once I am satisfied that I will not have these people on my back again and I can safely say the birds are being decently fed and have had a decent life [will we sell it]."

The production of foie gras is illegal in the UK and other European countries like Italy, Sweden and Denmark but countries including France, Canada and China all produce the controversial delicacy.

Tod Bradbury, spokesman for Hertfordshire Animal Rights, thanked the pub's owners for dropping the controversial dish, describing it as fantastic news.

He said: "This is fantastic news and we would like to publicly thank the owners of The Bricklayers Arms for making this decision."

"Foie gras production is undeniably cruel - it involves forcing metal pipes down the throats of ducks and geese and force-feeding them grain until their livers become diseased.

"Many scientific reports, including those from the EU and independent veterinarians have concluded that the process results in immense suffering to the animals involved in this industry."

Yet the campaign has left a sour taste in the pub owner's mouth, who alleges that staff have been verbally abused, false bookings have been made in the restaurant and activists have social media to criticise the pub over its foie gras policy.

Mr Michaels confirmed the dish will be dropped from the menus from mid-October, due to the "hate campaign" launched against the pub.

But these claims were rejected by Mr Bradbury, who said that the campaign was "legal and professional".

Mr Bradbury said: "There was nothing hateful. All the comments I saw, all the comments I am aware of, were politely asking them to remove it from their menu.

"I cannot see how it was a hate campaign at all."