Buffalo once roamed the open plains from Canada to Mexico in numbers so great that early explorers could not count them. So plentiful were they once, the American bison earned the nickname of 'thunder of the plains' whenever they moved, but the bison’s numbers dwindled almost to the point of extinction within the last century. But thanks to conservation efforts and a trend to healthier diets, the American bison are back.
Today, interest in bison within the hunting and food industries has helped bring the animal back from numbers dwindling around 1,000 in the early 1900s to more than 400,000 on modern farms and ranches today. Not only are ranchers seeing bison has an alternative livestock, but more hunters are getting a hunting experience that is exclusively American.
Hunting of wild bison is legal in some states and provinces where public herds require culling to maintain a target population. In Alberta, where one of only two continuously wild herds of bison exist in North America at Wood Buffalo National Park, bison are hunted to protect disease-free public and private herds of bison. In Montana, a public hunt was re-established in 2005, with 50 permits being issued. The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission increased the number of tags to 140 for the 2006/2007 season and this year’s bison hunting season and quotas would be the same under rules tentatively supported by state wildlife commissioners.
The popularity of bison meat goes well beyond the hunting camps. Following on the third consecutive year of double-digit increases in bison meat sales, the U.S. bison industry is poised to continue to expand both production and sales in 2008, according to the Colorado-based National Bison Association.
USDA year-to-date slaughter data indicates that 2007 this year will wrap up with an 18 percent increase in bison meat sales. The harvesting of bison for meat will have nearly tripled since the USDA began tracking the industry in 2000. For example, 47,098 bison have been processed under federal inspection through December 7, compared to 39,985 head processed during the comparable period in 2006 according to the USDA.
“All signs in our industry are positive,” said Dave Carter, executive director of the National Bison Association. “One of our major priorities for 2008 will be to bring new producers into the business to help meet the surging consumer demand.”
The surging consumer demand is injecting new optimism among ranchers, who appear ready to build their herds. Prices paid by ranchers for breeding bison surged by roughly 20 percent over the previous year’s average at the November Custer State Park Bison auction, long considered a bellwether sale for the industry.
Carter said several consumer food trends are contributing to the strength of the bison business.
“People have discovered that bison is a great tasting, healthy meat that is sustainably produced by North American ranchers,” says Carter.
The National Bison Association is dedicated to building a profitable, sustainable market for producers of all sizes, and all types. They work to promote all facets of production, preservation and marketing of bison, which are now estimated to be 150,000 in population on public and private land. The National Bison Association activities and services serve to better inform and educate members and the general public about bison. |
