ROCHESTER - Between the towns of Mentone and Rochester is an American bison farm that’s only been in business for a few years, but it’s already drawing international visitors.
In fact, a cooking show with World Burger Champion Joannes “Jo” Richard from France filmed on location at White Oaks Bison Farm, 8343 E. CR 400N, Rochester, recently, while a team from Japan visited the farm and purchased Tomahawk steak the same week. Both teams were competing in the World Food Championships in Indianapolis Nov. 8-12.

    Terry (R) and Courtney (L) Engstrand pose for a photo with World Burger Champion Joannes “Jo” Richard (C) at the Engstrands’ White Oaks Bison Farm, Rochester. The jacket is signed by Richard and his team. Photo Provided By Terry Engstrand
  

Terry Engstrand, who owns the farm with his wife Courtney, said, “We started the farm back in 2021. It was just kind of coming out of the Covid pandemic that occurred, and we saw that the meat selection at the grocery store at the local markets was not the best option that was out there for everybody. There was a shortage of meat and good product that was available.”
They knew that bison has good health benefits to it, including 100 less calories per pound than beef, more protein than salmon, less cholesterol than beef and higher B12 and Zinc in it than most products.
“Those were things we were all kind of looking at during Covid and after Covid. We, as Hoosiers and Americans, look at our food a little bit different. We want to know where it’s coming from, what’s the health benefit that comes with it. People are calorie counting,” he said. “The flavor was amazing, too, so it was kind of a combination of just all of that come together and I was like, ‘You know, I think there’s a market for this.’ And that’s how we kind of got started.”
After researching bison, they went out West to spend some time getting to know how to handle the animals, their needs and the nutrients they require.
The farm started with 10 bison. As of recently, they have 27.
“We’re looking to expand another 25 acres and capture another 15 bison for 2025,” Engstrand said. “We’re really doing two things. One, we’re really making sure that we’re getting good genetic animals and being very selective and working with some of the best bison producers in the U.S. and Canada to make sure we have really good genetics and really good healthy animals. And we’re also looking at breeding stock in the near future for us. We have sold some animals for breeding stock already, but we just continue to upgrade our genetics and some day we’d like to have our own genetic sale from our farm right here in Indiana.”
Earlier this year, Engstrand said they received an email from a representative who was working with Team Japan, who then later that same day called the farm. They told the Engstrands Team Japan had received information White Oaks had good bison product and they wanted to tour the farm and purchase Tomahawk steaks and ground bison. Tomahawk steaks is a ribeye with the ribs still attached to it. That visit took place Nov. 7.

    Terry (L) and Courtney (R) Engstrand pose for a photo with Team Japan at the Engstrands’ White Oaks Bison Farm, Rochester. Photo Provided By Terry Engstrand
  

“We took them out for a tour, and then we just talked about how we cook bison here in America, what are some ingredients and stuff. So we kind of gave them some key points and ideas as far as how we cook bison in different ways. They took some pictures and then they left,” Engstrand said.
Six weeks prior to Nov. 8, the Engstrands were communicating via email and live Team Chats with Richard’s people.
“We discussed the episode and the visit, just kind of what their expectations of what they were wanting to shoot and how long it would take and make sure we were okay with everything,” he said.
They had to secure the farm during the shoot and give them full rights to shoot video of anywhere on the farm. There couldn’t be a lot of people coming and going during the filming due to the recording and audio.
“Team France was there for six hours, from start to finish, shooting the episode and the series and just kind of having general conversation and different things. It was a really great time. They were extremely cool. We really enjoyed their company and they loved our hospitality and our farm, so it was cool,” Engstrand said.
They shot a full episode with the team. The episode hasn’t aired yet, but Engstrand said they will receive a copy of the episode once it becomes available to view and show others.
Richard won the World Burger Championship in 2023. He and his team won the best burger competition in France this year, which granted them the Golden Ticket to compete in the World Food Championships.
When they started the American bison farm, the Engstrands never thought they’d have visitors from around the world.
“In just the short three years that we’ve been open, I would have never guessed we would have had the World Burger Champion at our farm. But, how it all kind of transpired, really for the most part, was we have a customer base in the Indianapolis area, and somebody recommended our farm and trying our burgers when they were there last year. So, that’s how it kind of got started,” he said.
The farm does around 500 pounds of bison burger a month. It’s distributed out to Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, South Bend, Kokomo, Elkhart as well as locally.
“With that, we’re able then to support local events and giving back through different sponsorships and programs that are out there,” he said. They donated $2,500 to Boy Scouts of America, and supported Youth In Agriculture. “It’s nice to be able to give back to the community and give back to local (organizations), while at the same time we’re supplying product to larger city areas where you don’t see that opportunity as much, I think.”
Some area places that White Oaks Bison Farm product can be purchased include Hawkins Family Farm in North Manchester, Eyricks Farm Market in Bourbon, Mustard Seed Mercantile in Rochester and Arlington House, also in Rochester. The product can also be bought directly from the Engstrand’s ranch or online at whiteoaksbisonfarm.com.
“We’ve done 87 tours this year, from elementary schools to work places to church and youth groups. Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts. We offer a lot of tours. We had an open house back on Nov. 2 and we had over 400 people attend that in five hours,” he said.
With their tours, they have interactive events for kids so they can learn about everyday farming and opportunities.