Sunset Hills Bison Ranch, LLC

Let me introduce ourselves! We are Don, Christy, Neal, Karl and Bethany Kriegel. We are 3rd and 4th generation Iowa crop farmers. Our Bison Ranch is located just off I-80 near Malcom in the middle of Iowa directly between Des Moines and Iowa City!

With the ever changing grain markets, we have combined our talents and diversified our operation to include bison meat and livestock sales, agri-tourism and future AirBNB while continuing to produce corn and soybeans.

Why Bison? Glad you asked! We have always loved, and been intrigued by, this incredible animal. The history of the bison (American Buffalo) is fascinating and plays a very vital role in America's History. We all love driving through the herds in Yellowstone and Custer State Park and have even enjoy a day trip to Neil Smith here in Iowa just to catch a glimpse of a bison. Through research we couldn't help but to respect this breed and our desire to become experts in the industry was born. Beyond our love for the animal, we want to leave a legacy that our children, nieces and nephews can be proud of.

What is the difference between bison and buffalo? Good question! There is no difference between bison and American Buffalo. Bison bison is the scientific name. The industry has shifted to referring to the buffalo as bison because the name buffalo can be confused with water buffalo that is imported from Asia. Water buffalo is often marketed in the US as buffalo used in pet food and other products. To eliminate confusion and preserve the reputation of American Buffalo, producers often refer to them as bison.

We are excited to have to have these animals roaming on this ranch and restoring the land back to its original intent. Just as God created it. We look forward to having visitors at our ranch, enjoying the animals, shopping in our store and even staying a few nights in our cabin or glamping in our covered wagons!