‘Is it a bad idea?’: Curley considers buying buffalo to avoid skyrocketing beef prices

After KIRO host John Curley learned of the skyrocketing beef prices, he entertained the idea of owning his own farm. Before Curley equips several bison and buffalo to roam his property, he tapped a local cattle raiser for some pointers.

Jill Lagergren, owner of Oak Meadows Buffalo Ranch in Elma, helped Curley scale out his business plan to harvest meat rather than pay $8 for a pound of hamburger at a local diner.

“Is it a bad idea if I want to get a big buffalo? Apparently, I am a moron who thinks I could raise a couple of buffalo and save money in the end.” Curley said on “The John Curley Show” on KIRO Newsradio.

“It’s an excellent idea to buy buffalo. It’s lower in fat and cholesterol. A roast burger has a little fat added in for holding it together, but it cooks off. It’s a really good choice,” Lagergren said. “It isn’t a matter of it being a ludicrous idea. It’s a great idea if you have a setup for them. They need some space. They need to be left alone and not have people going into the field to try to pet the nice buffalo.”

Curley quickly realized that his one-bedroom condo would not be enough to corral a full-sized bison, and Lagergren noted that it would have a good time ripping the place apart.

Elma ranch owner shares 30 years of buffalo-raising experience

As Curley continued to envision a lifestyle as a rancher, Lagergren walked him through how she built her buffalo operation from the ground up.

“This is our 30th year since we started with four little heifer calves and one bull calf,” Lagergren said. “We did start with the little guys and then raised them on the property, but we have never attempted to tame buffalo. They adapt to us. They put up with us.

“We were actually up to almost 70 animals at one time. We’re moving towards retirement, so we’re more like in the 25 to 30 animals on the property currently,” Lagergren continued. “It pencils out for somebody who wants to do this as a nice secondary business, and then build it into a full-time business. It depends on how much property they have and how many animals they can support on that property.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

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