Bison Ranches Sell Meat Online

Bison Ranches Sell Meat Online Heritage Bison Ranches of Sisseton, S.D., and Hinton, Iowa, manage herds of buffalo for in-person and online sales nationwide. The animals are raised on 2,000 acres of native prairie grasses across the Great Plains and finished on family-raised corn.  “Bruce & Corrine Prins started ranching in 1974 in Sisseton, S.D.,” says their daughter, Rachel Bollmeyer. The Prins own the production herd at Rocking P Ranch in Sisseton, while Bollmeyer and her husband own the finishing operation in Hinton. “My parents bought land two miles from my grandparents and started raising cattle. In 1989, they bought 11 head of bison from a friend, really just for fun. Now those 11 head have turned into the production herd we have today, and the entire ranch is devoted to bison herds.” Why the shift away from cattle? “Over the years, markets for bison have steadily increased,” Bollmeyer says. “Maybe Mom and Dad were visionaries. Maybe they were just lucky. Who really knows? But they did it, and it worked.” Bollmeyer explains that caring for bison isn’t easier or harder than caring for cattle; it’s just different. “First, you don’t help a buffalo when it’s in labor. With a cattle herd, you are always helping heifers and some cows. Bison have extremely high calving rates. Just leave them alone and let nature do its thing.” Still, she highlights some key differences. Bison farms don’t castrate bull calves, unlike beef ranchers. Mineral programs also vary because bison require more copper in their diet. “Bison need room to roam,” Bollmeyer says. “We don’t use any special types of fencing or electric wiring to hold our bison herds. As long as they have sufficient grass, room to roam, and good water sources, they tend to stay where they’re supposed to. And if they want to go somewhere else, there isn’t a fence in the world that’ll hold them.” Rutting bulls are most likely to break through fencing during fights over females.  The yearly herd roundup presents a different challenge. “We leave the bison alone for 364 days a year, and then on day 365 we round them up and run them through our pens and chute systems,” Bollmeyer says. “Bison haven’t been domesticated. They’re extremely wild, fearful of humans, and will do anything to get away from you, including jumping 7-ft. tall pipe fences. We’ve learned over the years to be very calm in all our actions, as quiet with our voices as we possibly can be, and to use our hydraulic gate and chute system to keep our distance.” During the roundup, each bison is weighed, sexed and checked for pregnancy, then sorted into separate pens. Calves are sold at an annual auction in Sisseton around Thanksgiving.  Recently, however, the ranches have shifted toward online sales. “We’ve always sold some bison meat at the ranch, but in 2020, with the bison market being at record lows for bison producers, we decided to start selling online. Our customers can order online through our website or visit the Hinton ranch in person.” All ordered meat is shipped frozen with dry ice and gel packs. The farm ships every Monday, except on federal holidays. Orders must be placed by Sunday night at midnight. “We continue to grow our online business by staggering percentages each year, with the goal to eventually not even have our annual auction to the public each year,” Bollmeyer says. Bison meat is popular among customers seeking a lean, healthy meat option. “The flavor is just phenomenal.”   For farmers looking to enter the bison industry, Bollmeyer emphasizes the importance of patience. “It takes twice as long to finish a bison compared to beef animals, and they produce half the meat,” she says. “Bison grow with time, not by the amount of food you put in front of them. And you have to love them. It’s the love and caring for this beautiful animal that’ll get you through the blizzards, the droughts, and the market’s ups and downs.” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Heritage Bison Ranches, 28697 300th St., Hinton, Iowa 51024 (ph 712-212-4286; heritagebisonranches@gmail.com; www.heritagebisonranches.com).

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