The federal government recently announced increased funding to the Canadian Bison Association to boost its marketing and traceability initiatives.
The $370,000 in funding will support two projects to increase the appetite for bison products around the world.
About half of the money will come through the AgriMarketing program to promote bison products in trade shows, improve Canada’s market access to the United States and prepare for the 2012 International Bison Conference in Quebec.
The other half will be spent through the Canadian Integrated Food Safety Initiative to help develop the Bison Industry Traceability Program, which tracks the movement of bison through the supply chain.
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“Global markets are very important for the growth of the Canadian bison industry,” said Canadian Bison Association president Mark Silzer.
“The investment provided by the Government of Canada will help the bison industry to work with marketers to elevate the profile of bison and bison products amongst consumers internationally. The bison industry recognizes the value of traceability as a tool to control the possible spread of disease and to facilitate market access and this investment will help develop a system that works for the bison industry.”
The association has 600 producers who represent close to 90 percent of bison production in Canada.
The international appetite for bison continues to grow. Meat and live bison exports reached $40.5 million in 2009.
