Meat industry

In America, the commercial industry for bison has been slow to develop despite individuals, such as Ted Turner, who have long marketed bison meat. In the 1990s, Turner found limited success with restaurants for high-quality cuts of meat, which include bison steaks and tenderloin.^[52] Lower-quality cuts suitable for hamburger and hot dogs have been described as "almost nonexistent".^[52] This created a marketing problem for commercial farming because the majority of usable meat, about 400 pounds for each bison, is suitable for these products.^[52] In 2003, the United States Department of Agriculture purchased $10 million worth of frozen overstock to save the industry, which would later recover through better use of consumer marketing.^[53] Restaurants have played a role in popularizing bison meat, like Ted's Montana Grill, which added bison to their menus. Ruby Tuesday first offered bison on their menus in 2005.^[53] According to USDA's Agricultural Research Service, 100 g of raw bison (separable lean only) contains 109 calories and 1.8 g fat. The same amount of raw beef (separable lean only, choice grade) contains 291 calories, and 24 g fat.^[54]
In Canada, commercial bison farming began in the mid 1980s, concerning an unknown number of animals then.^[55] The first census of the bison occurred in 1996, which recorded 45,235 bison on 745 farms, and grew to 195,728 bison on 1,898 farms for the 2006 census.^[55]
Several pet food companies use bison as a red meat alternative in dog foods. The companies producing these formulas include Natural Balance Pet Foods, Freshpet, The Blue Buffalo Company, Solid Gold, Canidae, and Taste of the Wild.