Business Notes

Fanatically health-conscious Americans long ago deserted red meat, but they may soon flock back, attracted by a new entry on the menu: ground ostrich. Last month the Cuyama Buckhorn restaurant, about 160 miles north of Los Angeles, started serving ostrich burgers. Owner Ed Barredo charges the same for ostrich as for beef hamburgers, $6.95, and says he is selling about 25 pounds of ostrich a week.

The meat is dark, tasty and similar to beef but has one-eighth the fat and 15% less cholesterol, with just as much protein. Ostrich meat is lower in calories than even chicken and turkey. America's 1,000 or so ostrich growers, who raise the birds for their hides and feathers, are thrilled by the potential of this new market. Says ostrich rancher Gary Teixeria, who had the burger brainstorm and passed it on to Barredo: "The public is just eating it up."