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BANG FOR THE BITE
Bison’s pricier and harder to find than beef, but a lean waist and a leaner environmental impact make it worth a try next time you’re at home on the stovetop range.
COCKTAIL FACT
As slow and hulking as they appear, bison can outrun many humans (some have been clocked running 45 mph).
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home › tip library › Bison Meat
Where's the bison?
The Bite
The other red meat boasts less fat than most white meats (even chicken), and has a taste Gourmet magazine touts as richer in flavor than beef. In addition, since many bison exclusively dine on wild grass, when compared to factory-raised beef, the planetary benefits are as big as the plains are wide.
The Benefits
- We are what we eat, and the FDA allows zero antibiotics or hormones in bison meat.
- Many bison, including those raised commercially, graze naturally off of grass, renewing and stimulating new grass growth. Factory-farmed beef creates an oil-consuming machine due to the energy used to produce the massive amounts of grain or corn feed they’re fed.
- Get your iron, get your protein. One serving of bison adds 69% more iron and 25% more protein to your diet than the same serving of beef.
- Bison contains fewer calories and just one quarter of the amount of fat found in beef, and is lower in cholesterol.
Personally Speaking
Although she’s a pescatarean, Jen might be persuaded to try bison if Heather (who lovesall types of carnage) were to loosen her up with a few glasses of biodynamicwine. Jen’s canine pal Cricket, on the other hand, is a big fan of bison jerky.
Wanna Try?
Check for grass-fed (rather than corn-fed) bison.- Wild Idea Buffalo Company - we are fans of the founder, fellow Montanan, Dan O’Brien (no, not THAT one), who’s also an author ($80/sampler).
- Boulder Dog Food Company - bisonic (we’re a year old now… we coin our own words) treats for your pets ($7/2 oz).
- Bison Central - the online source for info on bison, from the National Bison Association, including some great recipes.
- Give THE MEATRIX a viewing, and be thoroughly entertained while making the commitment to switching to free-range, sustainable meats.
Jun 21,2006
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If I ate meat I would eat Bison
Before I moved in town, I used to "commute" to Bozeman along the Madison River, and pass through one of Ted Turner's bison ranches. They looked so amazing up there on that hill... so big and powerful and really PART of this land and our history.
So if you think about evolution or intelligent design or whatever you want to call it when the earth and its creatures change and develop synergistically... bison were here first, cows were not. Hence, our land is better suited to raise bison. And as it turns out, it is not only better for the land, but better for you.
Cricket goes bananas for her Pet Promise bison jerky treats... I even tried one. Shhh.
Off to run with the Crick and hum "where the deer and the antelope play...." - Jen
Biter Comments...
If you live in Canada, there's a website called www.canadianbison.ca
Looks delicious, can't wait to try it!
Bison is not the only grass-fed meat. There are plenty of grass-fed beef and poultry producers who are grazing their animals in ways that protect and nurture the soil, water and air. The animals are treated humanely and helping protect family farms. Check out www.eatwild.com to find a local, pasture-raised meat source.
Julie Morris
www.morrisgrassfed.com
You can have meat-like food without eating something like Bison. I saw a video that talks about vegan foods that taste just like regular fast food, but are actually healthy. http://www.lime.com/health/video/3229/veganism
As a beef rancher, I can tell you that a lot of us work really hard to raise grass-fed animals without hormones, etc.! There are often small farms you can buy from locally, if you are concerned about where your beef is coming from. I'm sure bison are great, too, but don't give up on the rest of us!
And what do you think the bison are eating in the winter? Hay put up with "oil-consuming machines", just like our cattle. Fact of life, sorry!
My dad just ate a bison calzone at a local microbrewery here in St. Louis Missouri (Schlafly's) - very cool place -
http://www.schlafly.com/bottleworks.menu.shtml
This is a great topic, because it raises lots of gnarly issues, and these are issues we all need to deal with.
Mostly you don't need to eat meat, and that's OK for those who don't. You also don't have to do lots of other things we humans have come to do as "normal" parts of our lives ... in fact most of them :-) So abstinence (well, not THAT abstinence) is an excellent alternative to those who make this their choice.
Second, Laine's point above (the beef rancher) is really important -- nothing's so special about Bison that makes it all that great. A cow or other animal fed on natural range land, with old fashioned animal husbandry is an equally fine source of food as a bison.
Third, Laine's other point is that it's pretty hard to grow an animal without dipping into big agriculture (read: grass, corn and other feed grown with good ol' fertilizer and pesticides). All these items are hard to come by in winter. And animals grown without any of these comparatively inexpensive feeds are hard to afford (been to Whole Foods Market lately?).
And last, making the choice to eat meat is something we need to see as a choice. It's not a prerogative, and certainly not necessary more than once in a while. Regardless of how it is raised, meat is an inefficient source of calories, which is why it is a luxury and has been through the course of humanity. In our odd, warped little bubble of a world here in the early 21st century, we have come to assume eating meat is "normal", just like driving (anything, not just an SUV), living in a big house, having the best clothes, and on and on.
We have to look at the world a little differently and we can do that by gently challenging our assumptions about what is normal. My wife and I started thinking about the way we use electricity, as a tiny example, and found tons of ways to reduce our consumption in a rather big way. And when we started thinking about this, we started thinking about other things.
Bottom line: eating bison is good when it is part of a healthy diet of awareness.
In response to Vegan9's comments above, why would anyone want to imitate the taste of fast food? If we are to produce health, whether in our bodies or the earth, "regular fast food" is not a model I would follow. As I tell my many vegetarian friends: If you really want to eat food that's healthy you should consider how it is raised. Just becasue you're eating fruits and vegetables does not mean you are helping the earth. If Americans knew how many pesticides, chemicals and barrels of foreign oil it takes to get the industrial fruits and veggies on their tables, they might re-consider. These chemicals pollute the soil and waterways we all depend upon. As a grassfed beef producer, I can tell you that meat rasied on well-managed rangelands is not only rich in essential nutrients (Omega 3s and beta-carotene to name two), but helps to protect native grasslands, watersheds, open space and rural culture. Bought locally, it helps your community's economy. As Tom says above, it's a "healthy diet of awareness" that we should all strive towards. Bon Appetit!
I have terminal cancer, and my oncologist told me that bison is a much healthier meat to eat than beef, or even chicken! It's so low in calories, fat, and all the other bad stuff, while being way high in good things, like fiber and vitamins. Plus, if you live in a city like mine, when you go to the supermarket, the beef isn't labeled "grass-raised" or anything like that. You just have to hope you got the healthy kind. My husband and I just started eating bison, and I wouldn't go back to beef for anything. Read "Fast Food Nation" if you need some persuasion.
PHOTO ALBUMS
Posted by: Carla | June 21, 2006 at 07:43 AM