Cattle Gallstones Bring Big Profits

Cattle Gallstones Bring Big Profits The tenderloin isn’t the most valuable part of beef cattle these days. Instead, there’s a growing market for gallstones. These nuggets of hardened bile are harvested in cattle gallbladders during processing, attracting prices up to $65 per gram. But they’re rare. Estimates show that gallstones can be found in just 1% of cattle. The Australian cattle industry produces about 200 kg (440 lbs.) of gallstones annually, while world leader Brazil tops out at 2,000 kg. (4,400 lbs.) Sources report that it takes an average of 30,000 cattle to generate 1 kg (2.2 lbs.) of gallstones, which puts the estimated value per cow at around $5 a head at best. No one understands the exact mechanisms that give cattle gallstones. Older cattle tend to produce more, which goes against the beef industry’s interest in getting animals to slaughter weight quickly. Still, U.S. processing plants are taking note and ramping up efforts to export the porous stones to Hong Kong. There, gallstones are prized by herbalists. Once harvested, the gallstones are cleaned and dried for weeks before being crushed into a powder and mixed with other ingredients (powder buffalo horn, realgar gemstones). They’re then encapsulated and sold for about $100 a pill as protection against strokes. There’s research to back up the hype. “Bovis calculus, also named Niuhuang in Chinese, is utilized as a resuscitation drug for treating neurological disorders,” explains a Frontiers Journal publication from January 2025. In China, people take gallstone pills as soon as they show stroke symptoms. Sky-high demand has led to theft in beef processing plants. Many Chinese citizens hoard the stones as a currency they believe will only increase in value.

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