The National Bison Association wants the Department of Agriculture to immediately develop new labeling policies to stop water buffalo products sold in the U.S. from being labeled only as “buffalo.” The association launched an online petition last week seeking the measures from the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service and the Food and Drug Administration.
The petition effort was launched after the National Bison Association learned of a growing number of retail stores carrying water buffalo meat that is labeled only as “Wild Buffalo” or “Free Range Buffalo.”
Dave Carter, executive director of the National Bison Association, says, the trust built by the bison sector “is threatened by water buffalo products coming into the market disguised as bison.” Carter noted that North Americans have been describing bison as buffalo for more than three centuries.
The association plans to meet with the two agencies to push for “immediate action.”
Source: National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.