FROM PROTECT THE WILD — GORDON RAMSEY COOKS A DELICACY THAT WAS A GANNET CHICK — REPULSIVE OR WHAT

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Gordon Ramsay cooked baby seabirds into a ‘delicacy’ and the footage is hard to stomach. What he discovered wasn’t cuisine - it was pure cruelty. DEVON DOCHERTY MAR 17 READ IN APP Footage has emerged showing celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay travelling to a remote Scottish island in search of a “rare” “delicacy”. But what he uncovered wasn’t cuisine - it was pure cruelty. In the four minute long clip, filmed as part of an episode of his series The F Word, Ramsay sets out for the Isle of Lewis in northwest Scotland to cook and eat young seabird chicks. The birds are killed during the Guga hunt, the UK’s last legal seabird hunt, where hundreds or thousands of Gannet chicks (known locally as Guga) are slaughtered every year as part of a cultural tradition. Yanked from their nests with a pole, the chicks - who are still too young to fly - are completely defenceless and unable to escape. They are killed by being beaten over the head with a rod. They are plucked, scorched and dismembered in full view of other birds, including their parents. This is the so-called “delicacy” Ramsay travelled hundreds of miles to partake in. Sign the petition A dying tradition Gordon carries himself with a familiar sense of entitlement throughout - making light of the process and quipping that this may be his “last chance” to eat Guga before the practice is ended. He calls the Gannets “notoriously greedy” - an interesting choice of words from someone pursuing one across land and sea for the sake of a novel culinary experience. But his comments betray a deeper truth; that the hunt’s days are numbered. The Guga hunt is only legal due to a narrow exemption in the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981), allowing Gannets to be taken from the island of Sula Sgeir under licence from NatureScot - Scotland’s public Nature Agency. The licence is discretionary, and every year NatureScot actively signs off on the death of these innocent chicks for the sake of maintaining a cultural tradition. There is currently a petition to stop this year’s licence going ahead, and it’s close to reaching 40,000 signatures. Tell NatureScot: Stop the Guga hunt Gordon’s reaction also reveals something else: Guga isn’t needed. This isn’t about food security or survival. It is, quite simply, a delicacy. The Guga hunt is a practice once rooted in subsistence, but it is now continued for tradition’s sake alone. And as if to make matters worse, he finds the whole ordeal repulsive. Gordon recoils at the sight and smell of the chicks’ carcasses, treating it as some kind of challenge. It feels pointless, trivial, and deeply disrespectful - a total and utter waste of life. It only goes to show how unnecessary this hunt truly is, and how little respect there is for these incredible birds. A species at risk - and still being killed Scotland holds nearly half of the world’s Northern Gannet population, making it one of the most important countries on Earth for the survival of this species. But they are now under extreme threats from climate change, bird flu, and other human disturbances. Gannets are built for life at sea - not for slaughter. We should not be making a spectacle of their killing. We should be protecting them. Killing wildlife for a delicacy is unacceptable. Gannets shouldn’t be on the menu. Sign the petition Support us to help end the Guga hunt. Protect the Wild have been relentlessly campaigning to bring a permanent end to the Guga hunt. Over the last few months, we’ve helped bring this shady practice out of the shadows and into the spotlight. We've released hard-hitting animations, reaching millions, with more on the way. We’ve secured national media coverage, met with MSPs and other key decision-makers, and helped drive a surge in public awareness and opposition to the hunt. Support us We’ve commissioned polling that shows 69% of Scots with a view want the law changed to end the hunt, while 72% do not believe the hunt holds cultural importance. We’ve hired a full-time Scottish campaigner to drive this work forward on the ground, and supported wildlife photographer Rachel Bigsby’s government petition - now surpassing 100,000 signatures, making it the fourth most signed petition in Scottish history and the largest animal welfare petition Scotland has ever seen. At the same time, we’ve put sustained pressure on NatureScot not to grant this year’s licence - forcing this issue onto the desks of those with the power to bring it to an end. This is only the beginning, and we will not stop until the UK’s last seabird hunt is finally history. But we can't do that without your support. All of this has been made possible by ordinary people choosing to support our work - giving a few pounds a month to help drive real change. You can help power this work by donating a small monthly amount. Your support saves lives. Support Protect the Wild SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing