Why Don't We Eat Bear Meat?

Bear meat is legal to hunt in many countries, hunters say it can taste better than beef, and one adult bear carries more meat than several pigs. So why has it never reached a supermarket shelf? The answer is hiding inside the meat. In 1897, three Swedish explorers vanished over the Arctic and were found frozen 33 years later, surrounded by polar bear remains full of tiny worms. In 1596, a Dutch crew ate polar bear liver and watched their own skin peel away. And in 2022, a family barbecue in South Dakota ended with six people infected — from meat that had been frozen for 45 days. This video connects those three stories to one hidden rule of nature: where an animal sits on the food chain, and why only 14 large animals on Earth ever became farm animals. KEY RESEARCHERS AND SOURCES CDC / MMWR (2024) — Outbreak of Human Trichinellosis, Arizona, Minnesota, South Dakota, 2022. Cash-Goldwasser, Ortbahn, Straily, Holzbauer et al. Trichinella nativa larvae stayed alive after 15+ weeks frozen; CDC advises cooking wild game to 165°F (74°C). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles... K. Rodahl and T. Moore (1943) — The Vitamin A Content and Toxicity of Bear and Seal Liver, Biochemical Journal 37(2):166–168, Dunn Nutritional Laboratory, Cambridge. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles... Ernst Tryde (1952) — De döda på Vitön, the trichinosis theory for the Andrée expedition. Later challenged by Bea Uusma (Karolinska Institutet). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andr%C3... Jared Diamond (1997) — Guns, Germs, and Steel: the domestication tests and the Anna Karenina principle. Gerrit de Veer (1598) — journal of the Barentsz crew at Novaya Zemlya. DISCLAIMER This video is for education and entertainment only. It is not medical, dietary, legal or hunting advice. The cause of death of the Andrée expedition is still debated by historians. Hunting laws and protected species rules differ by country — always follow local law and cook wild game thoroughly. #BearMeat #Trichinella #WildGame #FoodScience #Domestication