CATALDO, Idaho – Traditionally, the end of June is harvest season for elk ranches across the United States and Canada.

Velvet harvest, that is.

Velvet is the fuzzy, greenish-brown skin that covers the antler while in its growing stage.

“It is in this stage that the antler is a living, growing organism,” said Gary Queen, manager of Rose Lake Elk Ranch. “And this is what makes it so accessible to the body.”

Queen watches his bulls’ antler growth carefully. “Antlers can grow from 1 to 1 1/2 inches a day before it starts calcifying,” Queen said. It is also the time when many unsuspecting drivers are found gasping in disbelief to see a majestic bull elk with antlers 40 inches wide and 50 inches tall grazing peacefully along State Highway 3, where the Rose Lake Elk Ranch is located.

Velvet has long believed to be an aphrodisiac in the United States. It is a tradition that goes back 2,000 years. Velvet antlers are known for promoting endurance, stamina and strength and improve blood circulation, “all properties that are needed for that aphrodisiac feeling,” Queen said. “And these same properties just make one feel better. It revitalizes the entire body.”

Additionally, velvet is believed to provide the body with nutritional support for joint structure and movement. Many people with limited mobility find that elk antler supplements can help them function again.

Harvesting velvet was once a thriving, lucrative business for many elk ranches. In fact, Queen said, “Many elk ranches before the mid-1990s started in the business for the velvet.” Velvet was once sold to the Asian market for $70 to $100 or more a pound before the market crashed. A bull elk produces 20 to 40 pounds of antler velvet every year.

When the Asian market crashed, it was tough on many elk ranches. Queen said, “If the velvet does not bring a profit to the producer or the person selling it, then what’s the point?

“Many elk ranches stopped harvesting velvet once the market crashed,” said Queen, “and let their bulls grow hard antlers and started selling them as shooter bulls or trophy animals.”

Once plagued with tempromandibular joint disease (TMJ), arthritis of the jaw and aches and pains that come with age, Queen found in 1999 that regular use of antler velvet took away his pain and gave him renewed stamina. It made him a firm believer in the product.

For the past several years Queen has been making his own line of nutritional supplements from the antlers of registered Rocky Mountain elk.

Queen, who raises between 40 and 70 bulls on his ranch, started experimenting with ways to manufacture antler supplements. He initially cooked the velvet, but found that freeze-drying kept more nutrients, which resulted in a higher-potency supplement.

“Quality and cost,” Queen said, is why he started making his own natural supplements on the ranch. He purchased a freeze dryer three years ago and liked the results. “I now have a better markup cost, where other people can sell my line of natural supplements, and they and I can both make money.”

By producing his own supplements, Queen has been able to increase distribution and distributors across the United States. His distributors include chiropractors and veterinarians.

“Harvesting of the antler is done in a humane way,” said Queen.

The bulls are ushered into a series of sliding doors and stalls, where they are restrained one at a time. Queen then puts a tourniquet at the base of the antler to constrict the blood and nerve supply. The antler is then sawed off. “It does not hurt the animal.”

Every year, elk antlers shed in the spring and start regrowing.

After being harvested, the antler is immediately flash-frozen, like a meat or a fish product, at 0 degrees F. Then it is put in the freeze dryer for four to five weeks.

The velvet skin is stripped off, and the antler is pulverized to fine powder. Samples are sent off for testing at a laboratory looking for anything that may be detrimental to human health. After passing the test, the product is capsulated and is ready to use.

Although a lot of work is done to get the “trophy antlers” to the final stage as supplements, Queen said, “Getting a healthy product out there is more important than getting rich.”

He also manages the 144-acre elk ranch for the animal’s other benefits, including low-cholesterol and low-fat meat, breeding stock, trophy harvest and the hard antlers that artists use.

Queen can be found peddling elk products every Wednesday and Saturday at the Coeur d’ Alene Farmers’ Market.