Creek Project Investments says it will investigate animal welfare concerns raised by the public over the project

A British company which had been funding a large foie gras factory farm in China has suspended the project after pressure from animal welfare campaigners.

Cambridgeshire-based Creek Project Investments, which has been investing in what could prove to be China's biggest facility for production of the controversial delicacy, had been urged by organisations including Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) to drop the project.

It has announced it is suspending the operation until a review is carried out. "The directors have called for the review to include input from animal welfare and environmental experts to address any issues which may or may not exist," Creek said in a statement on its website.

Production of foie gras, which is made by force-feeding geese or ducks until their livers become enlarged, is banned in the UK and most other European countries, although it remains a prized product in France.