Buffalo Gal Specialty Meats

Cody the Buffalo in Pray for Mother Nature Commercial

2011-07-29T22:18:00.005-05:00

Pray For Mother Nature Jeans release a new video featuring the bison, a powerful symbol of nature. “The centerpiece of the commercial is ‘Cody the Buffalo’. We chose the Bison as a symbol for both the importance of preservation, and the enigmatic spirit of nature.”

Pray for Mother Nature from Funk Factory Films on Vimeo.

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PURE PIG: Ranch finds modern market for old-world product

2011-07-13T12:16:00.002-05:00

HOUSTON, Minn. — The pork raised at the Buffalo Gal Ranch isn’t like the pork your father raised — you’d probably have to go back more than a hundred years to find something similar.
That’s because Mike Fogel and Valerie Shannon raise heritage breeds like Russian wild boar and Ossabaw and Swabian pigs on their farm north of Houston. Some of the breeds trace their origins back to the 15th century.
Due to a Minnesota law that bans the raising of Russian wild boars, the Fogels are the only breeders and producers of the species in the state — their operation dates back to before the law was passed.
Ossabaw pigs, too, are a rare breed to own. The breed traces its heritage to Ossabaw Island off the Georgia state coast, where the breed was abandoned when the Spanish left. The breed went feral, and now wildlife agencies there are trying to kill off the pigs.
At the Buffalo Gal Ranch, littered with detritus and outbuildings from a bygone era of farming, the Fogels are all about doing things the old-fashioned way.
The Fogels let the pigs roam around in their pens or around the old dairy barn converted for their operation.
Outside the barn, litters of pigs roam with mothers, while inside breeding specimens and pigs almost ready for the butcher are housed in individual pens and get hands-on attention and care from Valerie. Lloydie, the stud used for most Russian wild boar breeding, gets regular baths and special meals.
The Fogels have no farrowing pens — small enclosures that hold mothers and piglets — nor do they use steroids, hormones or antibiotics.
“If a weak pig is born, we let nature take its course,” Valerie said.
The pigs are all raised and bred in small groups. “Heritage breeds are not conducive to factory farming,” Valerie said.
Lenny Russo, the chef and proprietor of the Heartland Restaurant and Farm Direct Market in St. Paul, buys all three of the Fogels’ breeds for his restaurant.
Each breed yields different flavors and textures, and Russo mixes them for each day’s menu.
Russo uses the Russians for products like pork chops, pork roasts and pork shoulders.
He also utilizes the whole pig, “from tip to tail.”
Heads are used to make head cheese, while bones are roasted for stocks and sauces.
“We have a really close relationship. It’s been excellent working with the Fogels,” he said.
While area restaurants are big customers for the Fogels, they also sell their products all over the country through their website.
“The Internet has changed so much for us,” Mike Fogel said. “We used to have to go to the brokers with extra merchandise, and they would cut us to the bone on profits.
“Now we send our customers emails about specials, and we sell out.”
Leave it to the Fogels to find a modern way to market a decidedly old-world product.

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Wild boars: What 'pork used to taste like'

2011-01-06T20:10:00.005-06:00

A southeastern Minnesota ranch is the last in the state to produce Russian wild boar, the original pork heritage breed.
By Rick Nelson, Star Tribune, January 6, 2011

I'll be honest: The words "Give Mama a kiss" were not what I was expecting to hear from rancher Valerie Shannon.

At least not at that moment. She was leaning over a wall and puckering up for an unlikely object of affection. He answers to the name of Lloydie, and he's a 300-pound Russian wild boar, complete with a bruising heft, primordial snout, an impressive pair of tusks, a coat of espresso-colored bristles and an enthusiastic snort.

Although he may not look the part, Lloydie is the Brad Pitt of Money Creek Buffalo Ranch, a prize stud who sires a steady stream of equally prized animals. Heritage breeds are all the rage among the nation's ever-growing number of pork aficionados, and nothing epitomizes this blast-to-porcine-past greater than the beasts on this fascinating Houston, Minn., spread.

"All pigs are derived from the Russian boar," said Mike Fogel, owner of the Money Creek Buffalo Ranch. "They are the original prehistoric pig."

He ought to know. Mike has been carefully raising Russian wild boar, as well as buffalo and Highland cattle, for 35 years. He and his hard-working family -- the crew includes daughter Nicole and son Derek -- are the last source for wild boar in the state, if not the Midwest. Restricted-species legislation has all but quashed the Russian wild boar in this part of the country; the Fogels' operation was grandfathered in and, should they ever stop, that will spell the end of this incredible animal for Minnesota diners.

As it is, it's a select group of fortunate humans who are able to experience the flavorful glory that is the locally raised Russian wild boar. Lenny Russo, chef/co-owner of Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market in St. Paul, is the Fogels' longest and steadiest Twin Cities customer. He's been buying for eight years.

"I don't know that we've ever been so welcomed by a chef," said Valerie.

"For him, price is not the issue. It's 'How are they raised?' and 'What are they fed?'"

Such are the queries for the flavor- and quality-obsessed. Russian wild boar are much leaner than their standard-issue domesticated pig brethren, but their meat is far richer. "I don't want to use the word 'gamey,'" said Russo. "It has a feral quality that other pigs just don't have. Let me put it this way: When you taste it, you can tell exactly what it is."

Mike Fogel shorthands it: "It's what pork used to taste like."

Flavor isn't the only draw, at least not for Russo. "It's not something you see on everyone else's menu, so it helps us stand out," he said. "It's popular with our guests. Our work becomes more interesting by virtue of having this product, and you can't put a price on that. There's really nothing that I don't like about it, except that it's expensive."

How much? "It's nearly twice as much as a pig the same size," said Russo. "But once you start tasting the stuff, it's worth every penny."

Nothing goes to waste

Unlike the vast majority of Twin Cities restaurants, Heartland is a true snout-to-hoof operation -- nothing goes to waste -- and Russo's use of the Fogels' Russian wild boar plays that out. The animals, which tip the scales at between 125 and 175 pounds, come from the processor (a small family-owned operation in Eyota, Minn., about 40 miles from the Fogels' ranch). They arrive in four to six pieces, making it easier to store, and more convenient to deal with, than a whole boar.

Most of the animal is reserved for chops and roasts. The liver becomes braunschweiger and the kidneys end up in cassoulet -- or the organs are marinated and grilled. The tongue gets pickled, the head becomes head cheese, and the legs make a long, steady climb toward prosciutto. "The only thing we don't use is the oink," said Russo with a laugh.

Another Twin Cities source: Cooks of Crocus Hill, where co-owner Karl Benson reserves a small allotment for its crop-share program.

"It's exactly what we like, which is when a quality product aligns with a great story," he said. "Besides, doesn't 'Russian wild boar' sound really cool? And it tastes good, too. It's that simple."

Still, the Fogels sell the lion's share of their inventory through their website, and the Web's immediacy has proven to be a game-changer. Pre-Internet, the family would try to sell surplus product through brokers, not always with success. Now Nicole sends an e-mail blast to their 12,000 subscribers, and the orders flood in; an average week can see shipments to hundreds of customers nationwide, with no middlemen taking their cut.

"The Internet has changed the whole way we do business," said Mike. "We wouldn't be here today without it."

The ranch, located in the state's southeastern corner, lies in the wooded crook of a winding, narrow valley, a picturesque shock from the dully undulating plains that motorists experience while zipping along Interstate 90. The Fogels' 250-head buffalo herd grazes on the fields above; a nearby community of Catholic nuns, living in silence, adds a spiritual element to the windswept landscape. Down below, a weathered red barn is surrounded by an unusual sight: a ring of tall concrete slabs, the kind usually associated with airport anti-terrorism defenses.

It's actually a concentric pair of walls, and they comprise the half-dozen neat-as-a-pin pens that the Russian wild boars call home.

"They're intelligent problem-solvers, they're very athletic -- they can leap over low fences -- and they're survivors. They'll eat anything," said Valerie.

Which explains why these animals have been decried in state capitols; they slip from domesticated to feral in a flash, and can wreak havoc when left to their own devices and allowed to multiply. No wonder security, which is tighter than your average correctional facility, has become second nature to the Fogels. "Lenny pays almost $500 a pig," said Mike. "For that price, you think we're going to let them run wild?"

(By the way, how can the word "wild" be invoked if the animal is farm-raised? Russo uses "wild" on his menu, despite the animals being farm-raised. "You can still call a wolf a wolf, even if it's raised in the house," he said with a laugh.)

The high-metabolism animals eat very well, feasting on corncobs, high-moisture hay, oat pellets and other roughage. The diet is supplemented by produce raised by the Fogels' farmer friends, who trade their surplus crops -- apples and pumpkins were a huge hit during my October visit -- for the ranch's meat.

The Fogels are beginning to cross breeds, in an effort to expand their product line. Their Russian wild boar herd, which hovers around 100, is closed -- all animals are bred on the premises -- and males and females are raised separately. Males live about 18 months before they are slaughtered -- longer than an average pig, which is one reason why the animal commands a higher price. The breeding gals are kept around for several years, enjoying life in the barn, listening to country music and watching over their little ones, which, as they scamper underfoot, suggest major adorable-pet potential. One look at the reality of their Jabba the Hutt-like mothers will rid even the softest-hearted of that notion.

After delivering three or four litters, the sows become sources for bacon. That bacon -- correction, that amazing, life-changing bacon, a bargain at $14.95 per pound -- is so popular that the Fogels can't keep it in stock. "We don't even eat it ourselves. We save it for sale, that's how popular it is," said Valerie. "Keeping this breed going, that's a legacy that we'd like."

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A man's best friend

2009-09-23T18:29:00.004-05:00

MONEY CREEK, Minnesota (WXOW) -- Behind the southeastern Minnesota bluffs, tucked into a desolate valley, sits Mike Fogel's buffalo ranch.

He started raising these 1700 pound beasts 34 years ago. From his first day, Mike fell in love with the animals.

"Once I got my first bison, I thought, 'I don't wanna raise cattle. I wanna raise buffalo,'" Fogel says.

And his love of buffalo pushed him to tame one of his own. He named it Cody.

"I couldn't believe somebody could actually do that because of the nature of the animal," he says. "I decided I wanted to try that with a buffalo."

Cody starred in Hollywood films and commercials. But two years ago, Cody died of kidney failure.

"He became a good friend actually," Fogel says. "When we lost him, it was devastating."

Cody was 19 and a half years old.

"He was such a big part of our lives, and when he died, it was just empty," he says.

Mike built a memorial where Cody was buried.

Shortly after, he found another rare, but well-tempered buffalo, Cody 2.

With the new Cody, Mike was able to do what he loves again--work with the buffalo.

But health issues threatened Mike's relationship with Cody 1, and it wasn't long before that lingering threat snuck up on Mike again.

"In February, I found out that I had Hodgkin's Lymphoma," he says.

It was cancer. Mike started chemo in Rochester early this year. He lost his hair and energy, but even harder for Mike, he lost his time with Cody.

"The winter was a hard thing to go through," Fogel says. "Anyone who's gone through cancer realizes how devastating it can be on your life. It can turn your world upside down."

With the support of his family and friends and the urge to get out with his buffalo again, Mike persevered.

Now that Mike has a clean slate of health, he says you should want what you already have.

"It changes your perspective on life," he says. "You look at things a lot different."

With his new perspective, Mike carries on working with Cody, with a new understanding of life that only a few have.

When Mike's time comes, he wants to be buried on his farm, right next to his old friend.

For more information on Mike's ranch, go to:

http://www.buffalogal.com

CODY the BUFFALO II goes to HOLLYWOOD!!

2009-01-06T20:44:00.035-06:00

We got a last minute call from Twist Productions, looking for a buffalo to be in Los Angeles in 6 days for a commercial shoot for TACO JOHNS Restaurant. Taco Johns is a Midwest based Mex-Tex Fast Fresh Food Franchise. We were told that the buffalo should be able to stand still while being physically pulled and pushed into the back of a van. Sure, Cody can do that!!

So we packed up Cody in his personal trailer and made the long trip out there (2200 miles) on November 9. Drove down I35 through Iowa, over to Denver with a spectacular drive down to Las Vegas and then over to LA. We stopped along the way sometime sleeping in the trailer and one night at the Super 8 in Green River, Utah (photo). Naturally everywhere we took Cody he drew crowds. While in Las Vegas we stopped at the Gold Strike Casino.

The shoot was on location on a 40,000 acre working ranch. The crew of 75 pulled in at 6 am on November 13. Catering Trucks, Hair & Wardrobe Trailer & lots of cameras and equipment. First we started with breakfast which was cooked to order egg burritos & omelets (egg whites-very California). They even gave us pre-pasted toothbrushes, energy drinks, sun screen, bottled water, vitamin water......Wow, we felt like movie stars.

The prop guys wanted to change out Cody's lead rope for the red and white striped one you see in the commercial. During the process of changing it out, Cody's head stall came loose, he sensed the bit out of his mouth and promptly took off. We followed him for about a mile, getting close several times, even had a hold of his tail at one time. After about 45 minutes of him 'playing with us', Tonya Obeso, our American Humane Rep, got a bucket with feed and we were able to get the rope around his neck and he easily walked back to the shoot with us. Many Thanks out to Tonya!!

We never had a minutes problem with him after that. TJ the DJ is a great guy. His real name is Maxwell Glick. He and Cody became fast buddies, as you can see from this picture - they developed quite an intimate relationship! After a full day of repeating the scenes and his early morning jaunt - he was exhausted and gladly went to his trailer to zonk out. We spent the night at a nearby Extended Stay Hotel and headed back home right away the next morning. We decided to take the southern route, through Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas.

We had dinner, drinks and fun at the Colorado Belle Casino in Laughlin, Nevada. Cody doesn't lay down while the trailer is moving, so he really appreciated the break. We ended up spending the night in the parking lot. Cody enjoyed all the stimulation from the lights, cars and people partying around the casino. On our way toward Albuquerque we heard that dreaded sound of a blown tire. Late on Saturday afternoon, we doubled back to a little town located on the Old Route 66, Grants, New Mexico. Luckily there was one shop open, Riverside Auto & Diesel and they happened to have our tire size for the dually. They stopped their other jobs to take care of us and we greatly appreciated that. We took the opportunity to walk Cody around and as the word spread about there being a live buffalo in their parking lot - well, everybody and their cousin came over with kids loaded in their vehicles to take pictures, ask questions and touch the big boy.

We had the very best authentic Mexican food at El Cafecito. Valerie left her jacket with both the digital and the camcorder in the pockets. So that was the end of our Photo Trip Journal. We did get in touch with the owners, Angie and Larry Baca, but by that time we were already 100 miles down the road. They returned the jacket and cameras to us right away and would not accept money for even the postage. Of course we sent them a caddy of our Buffalo Gal Snack Sticks and $ to cover the postage. We promised we would send any travellers their way.

So in 7 days we drove to California, made a commercial and were back home in our own beds.
We are so proud of Cody. Now instead of being that cousin of Cody the Buffalo from 'Dances with Wolves', he now has his own portfolio. We are hopeful that this will lead to some other commercial work for Cody II. He is an extraordinary animal with such a kind eye and he loves to travel. We expect to make quite a few appearances this year some of which are repeats and our old favorites.

2009 Schedule (thus far) Complete details & dates will be posted on another blog. Cody is available for photo opportunities at educational, corporate, marketing, festivals & parades.

June 6-7, 2009 - Kickapoo Pow Wow - Le Roy, Il
June 21, 2009 - Steamboat Days Grand Parade - Winona, Mn
August 2, 2009 - Buffalo Bill Days Parade - Lanesboro, Mn
August 14, 2009 - All Equestrian Parade for Wild West Days - Viroqua, Wi
August 15-16, 2009 - Viroqua Wild West Days
October 15-17, 2009 - History Fest - Mankato, Mn

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MEAT FIT FOR KINGS

2008-09-10T06:19:00.003-05:00

Several years ago I began cultivating a small but quality fold of grass-fed Scottish Highlanders. At first I thought they were just neat looking but have since discovered these were actually raised for Royalty consumption. No commoners were ever permitted to feast on this meat.

They are a very ancient breed of Scottish heritage and are known for their hardiness in their rugged native Scottish Highlands, with high rainfall and strong winds. They are affectionally referred to as "Hairy Coos" and a group of Scottish Highlanders is known as a fold, not a herd.

They are the most efficient foragers and browsers, used as live "bush hogs" because they eat most all nuisance plants. This maintains a truly organic method of pasture management. Another very interesting fact is that their meat is genetically, substantially leaner than other beef because they get most of their insulation from thick shaggy hair rather than subcutaneous fat!! Wow, that makes sense.

Within the coming months we will have ground meat, roasts and steaks available only in limited quantities. Our very discriminating and loyal customers are invited to give this lean beef a try.

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New to Our Website...

2008-09-03T21:16:00.011-05:00

Welcome to the Buffalo Gal Blog! My name is Mike and I will be updating my blog regularly with information, money savings specials, new products, and events related to Buffalo Gal, Cody the Buffalo, and the Money Creek Buffalo Ranch. Stop back soon. Happy Trails!

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