Ostrich farming rollercoaster

March 6, 2009 - 1:47 PM by Harry

Israeli ostrichWhat with mad cow disease fears, concern over the unhealthy effects of eating animal fats and reports on the environmental damage caused by cattle farms, “alternative meat” (not to be confused with “meat alternatives”) is a growth industry.

Compared to other meats, ostrich meat cooks faster, has richer flavor and contains less than half the fat that even chicken has. Hence the relatively heavy marketing efforts associated with the burgundy poultry meat, especially in England.

Here in Israel, the ostrich meat industry started to gain momentum in the Nineties, although in 2007, some new legislation was necessary in order to make it retroactively legal, when Environmental Protection Minister Gideon Ezra reclassified ostriches and crocodiles as “nurtured wildlife.”

Mike van Grevenbroek, a Dutch immigrant to Israel, and his wife Tsophia, have been farming ostriches for 27 years now in the western Negev’s Besor district. The van Grevenbroeks and their organization, called Exotic Crops, were recently profiled in depth in Ha’aretz. The farm keeps a living inventory of some 7000 ostriches currently, and its managers estimate that they export over 150 tons of meat annually – all to Europe. Soon they’ll start marketing to locals too.

Although the large birds were once an indigenous species here, they disappeared from Israel back in the Twenties. So in 1973, van Grevenbroek smuggled 50 chicks from Ethiopia:

This was no easy feat. “At the time, you weren’t allowed to take ostriches out of South Africa,” [he] explains. “The Africans knew they had a gold mine and didn’t want to share it. In those years, they were the only ones in the world who raised ostriches, primarily for feathers and the leather industry, and they didn’t want any competition. But we were already swept up in the fantasy, and felt there was no other way except to smuggle some eggs to Israel. And so one day, I put a few eggs that were almost ready to hatch in a carry-on bag – the chicks were really ready – and within a few hours we were on an African Airlines flight from Johannesburg to Tel Aviv.”

The industry endured a rocky road since then, with demand increasing in the Eighties and peaking in 2000, with 20 ostrich farms in operation in Israel, export laws changing all the time due to pressures from the kibbutz movement. But it wasn’t always about the meat – Exotic Crops only opened its slaughterhouse in the early Nineties – and even now, with ostrich meat booming in international popularity, competition has become stiff, with many firms around the world making for a crowded market.

Ostrich meat has even given new meaning to our nation’s ongoing conflict with the Iranians. But Israeli ingenuity seems to be up to the task. And another local ostrich farmer Reginald Michiels offers us many savory recipes beyond enormous sandwiches, if you’re interesting in trying it at home.

Image of an Israeli ostrich courtesy thenotbelonghereguy from Flickr under a Creative Commons license.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , • Category: Business, Environment, Food, General, History and Culture 

Comments

2 Comments on Ostrich farming rollercoaster

  1. Sean Mcgrath on Sun, Jul 19th 2009 7:22 AM

    2. During 1988 my wife and I worked for Mike and Sophia. We have lost touch with them over the years. Are you able to send me theiremail address or let me know a website I could use to contact them.

    Many thanks.

  2. sisay abebe on Sat, Oct 10th 2009 8:31 PM

    3. Dear Mike & Tsophia,
    I’m an Ethiopian living in Chicago,USA. I’m an Agriculture graduate by education but never done any farming. One of my relatives asked me a favor to research and write a business proposal for an Ostrich Farming in Ethiopia. Well, my info gathering sent me to this May 6,2009 Article.

    Mile and Tsophia , 26 years ago, you saved 50 ostrich chicks from Ethiopia and took them to the Holy land. May I ask you a great favor! Can I take 26 chicks (one for each year) from you back to Ethiopia when I’m ready to open an Ostrich farm in Ethiopia.

    I’ve visited Israel twice -Easter1985 and1983.
    My other request will be to have you as my mentor when the carriage start moving.

    I hope to hear from you soon.

    Regards

    Sisay Abebe

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