On the afternoon of May 20, 2020, a female visitor was knocked to the ground and injured by a bison in the Old Faithful Upper Geyser Basin after approaching the animal too closely (inside 25 yards).

It was the first bison injury this year, and happened just two days after Yellowstone National Park reopened in a phased way after the Coronavirus pandemic began.

Park emergency medical providers responded to the incident immediately. The woman was assessed and refused transport to a medical facility. The incident remains under investigation, park officials said in a news release.

The National Park Service personnel remind Park visitors that wildlife in Yellowstone National Park are wild. When an animal is near a trail, boardwalk, parking lot, or in a developed area, they advise giving it space.

“Stay 25 yards (23 m) away from all large animals. This includes bison, elk, bighorn sheep, deer, moose, and coyotes and stay at least 100 yards (91 m) away from bears and wolves,” is the rule.

If need be, visitors need to turn around and go the other way to avoid interacting with a wild animal in close proximity.

The National Park Service advises following these simple rules:

• Never approach animals. The animals in Yellowstone are wild and unpredictable, no matter how calm they appear to be. The safest (and often best) view of wildlife is from inside a car. Always stay at least 100 yards (91 m) away from bears and wolves, and at least 25 yards (23 m) away from all other animals, including bison and elk.

• Stay on boardwalks and trails in thermal areas. Hot springs have injured or killed more people in Yellowstone than any other natural feature. Keep your children close and don’t let them run.
• Never feed wildlife. Animals that become dependent on human food may become aggressive toward people and have to be killed. Keep all food, garbage, or other smelly items packed away when not in use.
• Never park in the road or block traffic. Use pullouts to watch wildlife and let other cars pass. Stay with your vehicle if you encounter a wildlife jam.

“We can’t guarantee your safety in Yellowstone, but these concepts will help you avoid the most common accidents. For more great advice review our Rules & Regulations, Laws & Policies, and tips for backcountry travel. If you have an emergency, dial 911 or notify any park ranger.”

The park staff encourages visitors to take the Yellowstone Pledge: “I pledge to protect Yellowstone National Park. I will act responsibly and safely, set a good example for others, and share my love of the park and all the things that make it special.”
(For more information, search Top 10 ways to put the Yellowstone Pledge into Action.)

Francie M Berg

Author of the Buffalo Tales &Trails blog

Midwest Buffalo Company and New Beginnings Ranch are pre-selling breeding rights to our White Buffalo Bull “OUTLAW.” We are also taking deposits, in order received and in advance, of Outlaw’s white buffalo calves. If you want a great chance at a white buffalo baby, a spiritual awakening for many and financial booster for your operation for sure, make your reservation now.

To book your buffalo cow for our breeding option with Outlaw—contact us for details.

Outlaw, our White Buffalo Bull, came to us from the fantastic Comstock Family of Mudd Creek Farm and we are excited to have him bring such joy to our tours, spiritual awakening for our local and nearby Native Americans, and boost our business in so many ways.

Book your animals now in order to not miss out. Our bloodlines have produced an amazing white buffalo in the past and soon again with Outlaw our White Buffalo Bull—the next one could be yours. However, you must book your animals in advance.

Our herd has been developed and improved from the best bloodlines available. Our foundation animals came from Custer State Park, Romanik Ranch, National Bison Association Gold Trophy Show & Sale and Sprik Farms. We have continued to add and improve our blood lines through our semen tested bulls from Custer State Park, and improved our genetic diversity by constantly up scaling the quality of our herd through the addition of new blood lines from Ken-Mar Buffalo Ranch, Cook Bison, along with the retention of our own top heifers for breeding and herd expansion.

Calves available November/December. All animals are fully wormed and vaccinated and available for transport. Each animal has a colored numeric dangle tag identifying the year born and unique animal ID along with a RFID tag for easy recognition. We can provide hauling services as well. All animals are located on our main breeding ranch in Cheboygan, Michigan. Contact Kevin MacRitchie 313-580-6776; 313-580-6776, kevinmacritchie@gmail.com. Michigan Bison Association Trading Post. https://www.michiganbisonassociation.org/index.php/the-trading-post.

Francie M Berg

Author of the Buffalo Tales &Trails blog

North American bison producers and marketers have worked diligently during the past two decades to build a strong relationship with their customers based upon the great taste and nutritional benefits of the meat, along with sustainable practices utilized in raising the animals. During the past few years, water buffalo products have entered the U.S. marketplace and been marketed simply as “buffalo.” See our fact sheet on Water Buffalo’s very misleading labeling.

One example is the one-lb. package of ground “Wild Ground Buffalo –Free Range” being marketed in an East Coast retail chain. The packaging and labeling are deliberately designed to lead consumers to believe that the product is American bison, when it is, in fact, water buffalo.The water buffalois being brought into the United States as whole muscle meat and reprocessed in a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved facility, but is not being processed under USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) voluntary inspection. USDA regulations require any water buffalo processed under its inspections services to be properly and fully labeled. Because water buffalo is classified as a nonamenable species under federal law, it is not required to undergo inspection if that meat is produced in an FDA approved facility. However federal regulations also prohibit the labeling of food in a manner that “is a false or misleading representation with respect to another food.”*This mislabeled product is spreading beyond the retail marketplace. Water Buffalo meat is also being distributed to food service outlets as well. It’s important that the customers in your dining, or retail establishments get what they are ordering.

Water buffalo processed without USDA and state-equivalent inspection carries potential risk for customers, and for food service establishments. That National Bison Association has filed a formal complaint to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to enforce this regulatory requirement for honest labeling.

We will continue to work aggressively with federal regulators, and to fully inform the American public of mislabeled products in the marketplace until there is full enforcement of rules to prevent consumers by being buffaloed when seeking bison meat for their families. Don’t lose customers over mislabeled product. Be sure that you are serving your guests 100% North American bison. National Bison Association, Westminster, CO. wwwBisonCentral.com; Tel 303-292-2833.

Francie M Berg

Author of the Buffalo Tales &Trails blog

By Robert Arnason
The Western Producer
May 12, 2020

Only a couple of months ago, the price of a bison carcass was close to $5 a pound in Western Canada.

Now, prices on the rail have dropped to $3.50 per lb.

But that number isn’t precise because the packing plants are processing very few animals.

“There’s no liquidity right now,” said Dean Andres, who raises bison near Windthorst, in eastern Saskatchewan. “Any Canadian (bison) producers that are reliant on a Canadian plant or somebody to buy their calves, that market has, I don’t want to say ‘collapsed,’ but that’s probably the most accurate word.”

Statistics Canada data illustrates the size of the drop. From Jan. 1 to March 31:
• U.S. bison meat exports were worth C$1.38 million. That’s down from $3.8 million in the first three months of 2019.
• Total exports were $1.77 million, down from $6.07 million in January, February and March of 2019.
• Sales to France were $81,000, compared to $479,000 in January-March of 2019.

“The (meat) inventories in Canada are scary right now,” Andres said. “It was destined for Europe or restaurants. And then when things shut down … a lot of marketers were stuck.”

Within Canada, the bison trade sells the majority of meat to restaurants and food service companies. A small percentage is sold at grocery stores.

There are three federally inspected bison processing plants in Western Canada: Bouvry Exports in Fort Macleod, Alta., Canadian Premium Meats in Lacombe, Alta., and True North Foods in Carman, Man.

High-end cuts of bison from those plants, like sirloins, tenderloins and rib eyes, would normally be exported to Europe, but the price of air freight has become a massive barrier.

“We’re paying $15 a kilogram to ship in there…. Freight is usually around $3 per kilo,” Andres said, explaining that European customers pay a price for bison meat that includes shipping. Canadian exporters cover the cost of freight.

“We’re all crossing our fingers…. Airlines flying would definitely help the Canadian bison market because most of the bison that are slaughtered, part of the carcass does go to Europe.”

U.S. markets slowed

While bison meat exports to the U.S. have slowed, live bison exports are similar to 2019. From January to March live animal exports were worth $17.7 million, nearly a carbon copy of the $17.6 million in the first three months of 2019.

America’s bison trade continues to slaughter and sell a significant number of animals, despite the closure of thousands of restaurants.

Bison is available at most grocery stores in America, including major players like Costco. Consequently, the U.S. bison trade is better positioned to shift additional sales to retail.

Ranchers who export live bison to American buyers are faring better than other Canadian producers, Andres said.

“They have their loads booked for the year. So those guys are doing pretty well, even though the price has dropped quite a bit in the U.S.”

The value of bison calves is also down in Western Canada. At the last sale, most calves sold for less than $1,000. Some were close to $700.

“I would peg cost at production at $1,100, per calf, to break even,” Andres said.

“Those are post-BSE prices. It’s a little bit scary for a lot of producers.”

Something that could help bison producers is the federal Surplus Food Purchase Program, a $50 million initiative announced early May. If the feds would buy some of the bison meat in storage, more animals could be slaughtered, which might prop up bison prices and reduce the number of animals on feed.

“That offers some potential for the bison industry,” Kremeniuk said.

That’s one possibility, but there’s no silver bullet solution, he added.

This may require direct aid to help with feeding costs, more sales to Canadian grocery stores and more air traffic, which would reduce the freight cost to Europe.

“We definitely need to get some retail (sales) going (in Canada). It seems like restaurants are going to be very, very slow coming back,” Andres said.

“I think what’s most important right now is that we get back to killing bison so we don’t clog up the supply chain.” Contact robert.arnason@producer.com

Francie M Berg

Author of the Buffalo Tales &Trails blog