Today, there is a health crisis on Reservations across the United States and specifically on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. The lack of availability of healthy foods has contributed to unprecedented rates of food related disease among Tribal members. It is estimated that more than 71% of households are impacted by dietary diseases. Average life expectancy is 61 for men and 70, the lowest in the western hemisphere (including Haiti).
Many Lakota elders rely on Government commodities and highly processed foods which contribute to food born illness such as diabetes. At the same time, there are a several Lakota families on the Reservation who are raising bison but can't afford to distribute their products locally. This project will not only provide healthy, low-fat & nutrient dense grass-fed bison meat to Lakota Elders, it will also help support Lakota bison caretakers acquire more land, increasing their profitability.
Funds raised through this project will be used to purchase animals from various Lakota bison caretakers based on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and will also pay for processing and distribution of meat to elderly food programs based in each of the 9 Districts on the Reservation. The health benefits of grassfed bison meat has been well document and is even recommended by the American Heart & American Diabetes Associations. This project will also provide much needed capital to Lakota ranchers.
Our long-term goal is to create a viable local food economy on the Pine Ridge Reservation and other Reservations by encouraging local food production, local distribution and local consumption. We envision a future where Native American Reservations across this country are able to fully benefit from their vast natural resources rather than the current system which favors the leasing of Indian lands to non-native farmers and ranchers for pennies while Tribal members live in poverty conditions.