It’s a rosy picture for bison producers as increased demand for bison meat nationally and internationally drives up prices, industry sources say.
“The demand for bison meat is certainly strong because of the quality of the product and I think the industry has done an excellent job of promoting the product,” said Terry Kremeniuk, executive director of the Canadian Bison Association.
Last year, bison meat was selling at $5 per pound (hot hanging weight) and this year it is now selling at $6 per pound. Hot hanging weight is the carcass weight at the processing plant with the hide off and all the insides removed.
There are many reasons for this. In the United States, the low Canadian dollar has made Canadian meat much more alluring. The United States also chose the bison as their national mammal in May, putting it into the spotlight.
“The quality of the product and the industry has done a good job of positioning the product as something that’s appealing to people who live a healthy lifestyle,” Kremeniuk said.
Bison exports in Canada have been steadily growing the last few years, with 14,000 animals exported in 2013, 20,000 in 2014 and between 27,000 and 28,000 in 2015.
Les Kroeger, a bison farmer from near Hanley, is enjoying the high meat prices.
“Everybody’s quite happy. We’ve been in quite a few years of very good prices and we’ve been seeing increases regularly year after year. It just shows that there is market stability,” Kroeger said.
Kroeger has been raising bison since 1989. He currently has a herd of 60 cows calving, with 149 animals on his farm. With the meat prices being so high, he is wanting to expand his herd.
“The demand for the product far exceeds the supply that we can maintain right now so we’re in the position where we are wanting to expand the size of our operation,” Kroeger said.
Source : Leaderpost