New York – Silver Fern Farms, New Zealand’s largest red meat producer and exporter, announces that its high quality venison is now available in over 500 Alberton’s stores across the Midwest in Jewel supermarkets, Shaws, Star Market, and Acme Markets.
New Zealand is the number one source for farm-raised venison worldwide. Estimates are that New Zealand has half of the world’s farmed deer population, with around one million deer on 2,000 farms. The farming of deer started in New Zealand in the 1960s, and the country continues to be the world’s most advanced deer farming industry.
Their new 1-pound Silver Fern Farms ground venison packs are pasture-raised, and vacuum packed to lock in the flavor. Easy to cook and prepare at home, ground venison offers nutritious, tender, and premium-tasting meat at an accessible price point.
As people continue to spend more time at home, cooking is the new going out and venison offers a tasting experience beyond the usual red meat options. Ground venison can be used in a variety of dishes that you would typically find ground beef or other ground meats, such as burgers, meatballs, tacos, pasta dishes. Venison is one of the healthiest meat products available. It is an excellent source of protein, one of the best dietary sources of iron, very lean, and is packed with vitamins and minerals.
Silver Fern Farms pasture-raised venison is an offering that is unique to New Zealand where the animals are humanely raised on free-range pastures and processed according to international quality-assurance standards. Silver Fern Farms red deer forage vast pastures across a diverse landscape of glacial-carved valleys to rolling foothills and sweeping plains.
“Silver Fern Farms’ venison is uniquely imbued with the beautiful & lush New Zealand landscapes in which the animals are raised, leading to velvety, tender and delicately flavored meat which is redefining consumer expectations of venison globally.” says Matt Luxton, USA Country Manager “That’s why we are excited to share our premium quality pasture-raised venison with U.S. customers looking for a delicious alternative to spice up their meal repertoire. We value the opportunity to expand access to our New Zealand pasture-raised venison with the launch of our ground product in Jewel, Shaws, Star Market and Acme stores.”
This new product launch is part of Silver Fern Farms’ latest expansion initiatives across the U.S. The company currently exports grass-fed beef, lamb and venison to the U.S. from 14 processing plants throughout New Zealand. In 2019 Silver Fern Farms entered the U.S. consumer market with branded 100% grass-fed beef and lamb, and pasture-raised venison packs distributed in supermarkets in the Tri-State region of New York, New Jersey, and recently expanding into Southern California. In November 2020 they launch a new e-commerce platform us.silverfernfarms.com, making their range available for delivery to consumers across the continental US.
Silver Fern Farms has been a committed red meat exporter to the U.S. for 30 years providing New Zealand-farmed products to individuals, restaurants, distributors, and retailers alike with several product ranges including premium ground beef, beef steaks, lamb, and venison retail packs.
Silver Fern Farms has been able to bring their grass-fed products to the US by working with The Lamb Company, a trusted red meat supplier servicing the North American market for over 50 years, of which Silver Fern Farms is an owner and shareholder.
“Through relationships and part ownership of distribution partners in key strategic countries like the USA, we are able to have very clear oversight of every stage of the supply chain from the Farmer to the Retailer which is very unique in this industry” says Luxton.
ABOUT DEER IN NEW ZEALAND: Deer need special handling and care, and New Zealand has perfected the optimal free-range and pasture-raised farming practices for delicious and delicate venison products. U.S. shoppers agree. It is estimated that over 85% of U.S. venison sales are currently imported from New Zealand and the U.S. is the largest market for venison with 23.6% of worldwide consumption.
Red deer were brought to New Zealand in the late 1800’s. In 1905 U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt gifted 18 American elk to the New Zealand Government. They were placed in the remote Fiordland National Park in the southwestern corner of the South Island. The deer relished the conditions and with New Zealand having no large predators the deer population grew quickly. In the 1960s farming pioneers saw the potential for farmed venison for export.
ABOUT SILVER FERN FARMS: Silver Fern Farms is New Zealand’s largest grass-fed lamb, beef and venison producer, supplying the United States from the rolling pastures in New Zealand and striving to set the world standard in red meat. Starting as a small farmer co-operative in 1948, they produce 30% of all New Zealand lamb, beef and venison in partnership with 16,000 farmers, and exports to over 60 countries.
