Why this Louisville-area farm raises grass-fed bison sustainably

If you've ever eaten a bison burger at a Louisville-owned restaurant, chances are the bison was raised on Woodland Farm in Goshen, Kentucky.

Farm manager Kristopher Kelley said the American Bison on Woodland Farm are as wild as they can get. Nearly 500 bison roam across the pastures eating as much grass as they like. Bulls are organized into herds, cows raise their calves in groups and calves stay with their mothers for a full year. The bison are typically handled by people only once a year to give them necessary vaccinations.

That sustainability was the focus for Louisville entrepreneurs and philanthropists Laura Lee Brown and Steve Wilson, who bought the historic Woodland Farm in 1996.

"From the beginning we liked the idea of helping to save a breed that was almost extinct," Wilson said. "And there's no question that ranchers and farmers brought the bison back from extinction. I was raised by a cattle farmer and thought bison had to be finished on grain, but they really don't. It takes a little longer to mature with grass-fed but ultimately it's the right thing to do."

The result is a steady supply of grass-fed, sustainably raised bison meat processed in a USDA-approved facility in Southern Indiana and sent right back into Kentucky Proud restaurants and grocery stores.

"Every cow on this farm was born here," Wilson said. "We know the source, we know who took care of it, and how it was processed. It's the most farm-to-table you could possibly be."

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Sustainably raised, grass-fed bison

On a recent sunny fall day, Woodland Farms' cow-and-calf herd grazed in one of the farm's front pastures, weaving among sprouts of tall Johnson grass, troughs of water and mineral licks. Both male and female bison have horns, Kelley explained, and "bison" and "buffalo" are different words for the same animal.

"There's one of the younger herd bulls, with a bird on his back," Kelley pointed out. "The birds often follow them around and eat bugs off their face and body, but our bison don't really have as many flies as a lot of cattle have, partly because of how often we're moving them."

Kelley has the bison herds on a rotational grazing pattern, moving them every one to three days for maximum soil enrichment and plant protection.

Everything on Woodland Farm is approached with the same sustainability in mind: The farm's lumber is harvested from its own forests, biofuel is used for farm machines, and gardeners pick insects from plants by hand.

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"The joke is you can herd a bison anywhere he wants to go," Wilson said. "They are wild-natured and we don't try to domesticate them. As long as they're fed well and have plenty of water, they're happy."

What does bison meat taste like?

Wilson says people tell him the bison burger on the menu at Proof on Main, 702 W. Main St., is the best thing they've ever eaten.

Bison meat is quite healthy, he said, with less fat on it than chicken. Because it has less fat, the trick is to not cook it too long. He likes to order his bison burgers medium rare.

"It's the complete opposite of a Kobe steak," Wilson said. "I think there's more flavor in bison meat, and you don't get that fatty lingering flavor on the tongue like you might from a really fatty hamburger."

Woodland Farm sells its bison meat, roasts and ribs at the on-site farm store and at stores like Kingsley Meats & Catering, Paul's Fruit Market and Rainbow Blossom. It's also on the menu at restaurants like Burger Boy, Burger Girl, Proof on Main, Bluegrass Brewing Company and Game. Ground bison meat starts at $12.44 per pound, roasts and ribs run $10 to $14 per pound and steaks run $13.63 to $29.13 per pound.

According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife service, bison are no longer threatened with extinction. There are about 20,500 plains bison in conservation herds and 420,000 in commercial herds, like the ones at Woodland Farm.

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"There's a lot of reasons to like bison but I would say the most common is the health benefits because it's such a healthy red meat," Kelley said. "And this is a rare instance where raising animals for production has been a big part of their comeback overall, which is cool."

Reach food reporter Dahlia Ghabour at dghabour@gannett.com.

Where to find Woodland Farm bison meat

The farm store: Visit the farm at 4716 Greenhaven Lane, Goshen, Kentucky, Tuesday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. to buy cuts of bison, pork and eggs. Ground bison meat starts at $12.44 per pound, roasts and ribs run $10 to $14 per pound and steaks run $13.63 to $29.13 per pound.

Local markets and restaurants: You can find Woodland Farms bison meat at Kingsley's Meat market, Paul's Fruit Market and Rainbow Blossom. You can also find it on the menus at restaurants like Proof on Main, The Oak Room, Bluegrass Brewing Company and Game.

More information: Visit woodlandfarm.com or call 502-664-7182 for more information.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Woodland Farm raises grass-fed bison for farm-to-table, healthy meat