/

The Bison of Eustis

4 mins read
Michael Weaver and the bison.

EUSTIS – There’s a lot of what someone might expect in Eustis: humbling mountains, quiet roads and crowds of deer who are just as at home as the local homo sapiens. As you veer off the main drag, where the views begin to open up, the deer start to take over, quickly outnumbering any people that might be around. And if you drive still further, the bison population begins to rise, too.

There are 32 bison in Eustis, to be exact, and that number is on the rise.

Bigelow Fields is only two years old, but the 126-acre bison ranch is already well on its way to making a name for itself. Right now, owners Michael and Nichole Weaver are focusing on increasing their herd and only have limited supply for sale. They had a chance to taste their product recently and the Weavers said it was an exciting moment.

“Our son was so pumped to be eating our own meat. For us it’s satisfying to see him understand the circle of life and for him to have that respect for the process and the food that he’s eating. Plus he doesn’t get that jazzed about food so it was really cool to see him so excited,” Nichole said.

The Weavers chose bison partly because of it’s a less competitive market, but also for the romance of it.

“It’s America’s mammal,” Michael said, who grew up in Alaska.

Bison is also considered to be a much healthier, leaner meat, and the large animals eat a third less than cows during the winter months when their systems slow down to conserve energy. The Weavers wanted to find their niche in the locally raised meat scene, and bison fit the bill.

The first generation farmers did their research – touring other bison farms on the east coast and picking the brains of the experts. When the Kennebago property they had had their eye on dropped in price, the couple jumped at the chance to get started.

Eustis was the perfect fit for the new endeavor. Bison require a lot more space than cows to run, play and frolic, so the wide open fields of the property were perfect. Bison are an extremely athletic animal, and can run up to 40 mph. They can also jump 6 feet into the air, Michael said.

“The fencing has to be more robust and you have to have a good handling system,” he said.

But what bison owners invest into their extra fencing and systems is returned by the lack of housing needs. Bison are fairly undomesticated, which means they can pretty much fend for themselves on a day to day basis. The mothers even give birth independently, with the support and protection of the rest of the herd. Despite every type of wild animal that exists in the state, Michael said they have no issues with anything bothering their herd.

“Even when there’s a calf out there, we rest easy at night. The moms don’t let anything near them,” he said.

While Bigelow Fields meat is still not on the shelves, Nichole has turned herself into a bonafide baker – experimenting with sourdough, bourbon, candied oranges and roasted garlic. Her bread is available for purchase locally at Tranten’s and the Coplin Co-op as well as several restaurants.

To stay up to date, find Bigelow Fields on Instagram and Facebook or by going to their website here.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

7 Comments

  1. Loved to read this article about you and your Family Nichole! Wishing you much success. 😊

  2. Great to see an up an coming buffalo farm in the area. I love bison meat. It will be awesome when it is available locally!

  3. All the best in your new endeavor. Looking forward to buying your bison meat when it becomes available.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.