Canadian bison producers can expect demand for bulls younger than 30 months to increase in the coming months, partly due to interest from American buyers.
That should mean strong prices will continue well into 2007, said Dieter Pape, chief executive officer for the North American Bison Co-operative.
“You’re going to see more of the American marketers come to Canada to look for animals,” said Pape. “There’s a number of us up there already. We’re looking to significantly expand the number of animals we bring in from Canada.”
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Prices for quality animals likely will rise by 10 cents US per pound in the fourth quarter of this year, he predicted, and could stay there for the next year or so, depending on how much the bison herd expands in North America.
“I think it’s a very solid industry. I think the pricing structure for both the producer, as well as the marketers is such that each can be profitable. That’s a big change from two or three years ago, where it was very difficult for the producer to make any profit.”
At two bison conferences earlier this spring in Saskatoon, Rusty Seedig, chief operating officer for the bison co-op, noted that his firm would need to increase its bison purchases by about 42 percent this year over 2005. According to a News release
news from the Saskatchewan Bison Association, Seedig hoped that up to a third of that new demand would come from Canadian producers.
During the conferences, Seedig also predicted that Canadian producers could anticipate prices for their cull cows and bulls to rise anywhere from 50 to 90 percent once the United States allows imports of older animals. No one yet knows when the border will fully reopen.
Health conscious consumers and greater sophistication in marketing bison meat are driving demand for the product, Pape said.
Terry Kremeniuk, executive director of the Canadian Bison Association, said there is growing optimism among Canadian producers. Awareness of bison meat is well established on the Prairies and there now is increased emphasis on building markets in Ontario, Quebec and Vancouver.
“There is a high level of optimism in the bison industry,” Kremeniuk said. “Prices are moving up slowly and I think because of that you’re going to see continued growth and investment in the industry. Good steady growth is healthy for the industry.”
The North American Bison Co-operative is the world’s largest processor and marketer of bison meat products. Roughly a third of its members are Canadian.
