Yes, our bison spend their entire lives in the pasture eating only natural grasses. In the winter, or if the grass is depleted by drought, they are fed grass hay. They have free access to salt and natural mineral. They are never fed grains, which means they do not receive any genetically engineered products. For more on the benefits of grass-fed meats, see Eat Wild. We are inspected annually by “A Greener World” to ensure we continue to meet the certified grassfed code.

No. Because it is classed as a “wild” meat, USDA inspection is not required. The on-farm processing facility is state inspected and approved and Custom Pack meets HACCP requirements (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point system, is a process control system that identifies where hazards might occur in the food production process and puts into place stringent actions to take to prevent the hazards from occurring). USDA inspection would only add to the cost of the meat.

The bison are field-slaughtered which means they are shot and bled in the pasture. They are then taken a short distance to a building that is state inspected and approved for processing. After the meat is hung and chilled, it is transported to Custom Pack in Hastings, NE where it is cut and wrapped. Because the animals have not been stressed prior to slaughter it is not necessary to let the meat “hang” to tenderize it.

No, our bison are never given any medications. We put apple cider vinegar into their water supply at certain times of the year which seems to take care of internal and external parasites such as flies and worms. We have also seen them recover from swollen hooves and other apparent infections without any other treatment.

As long as the packages are not damaged or thawed and refrozen, the meat will usually stay good for at least 2 years. Once the meat is thawed, it should be cooked rather than refrozen. If the frozen meat looks dried out on the surface, that is what is called freezer-burn. It will not harm the meat but you may want to trim that part out.

The animals are fed no grains (soy, corn, wheat, or GMO feeds). The processed meats (summer sausage, & hot dogs) are required to have a preservative added; we have used celery and/or beet powder as a preservative. These have naturally-occurring nitrites but are not considered “curing” products, thus they are classed as “uncured”. The brats are uncured and uncooked so they are not required to have any type of nitrite added. We have 2 types of jerky: one with sodium nitrite as a preservative, and one that is dried down sufficiently to not require any preservative. None our our products contain gluten or MSG.