Buffalo Butchering Workshop @ Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit

We are excited to feature a full traditional buffalo butchering workshop led by Arlo and Lisa Iron Cloud at this year’s Great Lakes Intertribal Food Summit held at the Meskwaki Nation in Tama, Iowa from May 9-13.  Starting with a ceremony and respectful kill in the field on Wednesday morning, May 9th, this workshop will cover all aspects of traditional butchering and use of the animal over the following days, with meat going onto the event menu.

meskwaki_buffalo workshop#2

Part of the intention behind this workshop is reconnecting to traditional, full-use approaches that respect the gifts provided by our four-legged relatives.  By conducting the kill in the field, the animal will be placed under less stress.  The hands-on nature of this workshop will give participants a much better understanding and appreciation of from where our meat comes.

IMG_4374IMG_4382IMG_4376IMG_4381

Bison Reductions in Yellowstone

This article is definitely relevant to tribal food issues since it discusses a staff recommendation to reduce Yellowstone National Park’s bison herd for effective management purposes.  A hunt is one of the strategies, but the article also points out that there have been numerous calls for increased cooperation with tribes seeking to expand their buffalo herds.  While Yellowstone’s buffalo population is one of the most genetically healthy in the world, the animals do have issues with brucellosis, which is an animal disease affecting pregnancy that has been eradicated through most of the world.