Ariane Daguin

Ariane Daguin was born into a world of great food. Her father, Andre Daguin, chef-owner of the Hotel de France in Auch, Gascony, is famous throughout France for his artistry with foie gras and other Gascon specialties. A career in food might have seemed natural, but Ariane decided to pursue an academic degree at Columbia University. While working part-time for a New York pate producer, Ariane was in the right place when the opportunity to market the first domestically-produced foie gras presented itself. In 1985 she launched D'Artagnan, the only purveyor of game and foie gras in the U.S. at the time. The creation of D'Artagnan coincided with a growing sophistication in American cuisine and an increased interest in organic, free-range chicken and humanely raised veal. At the vanguard of the farm-to-table movement, today D'Artagnan is the leading purveyor of organic poultry, game, foie gras, pates, sausages, smoked delicacies, and wild mushrooms to the nation. In addition to running D'A