Bacon and doughnuts return to Alaska's federal lands for bear hunting

The US interior department finalized a rule on Friday that permits hunters on federal lands in Alaska to bait bears with human food. The measure takes effect in mid-November and replaces a 2024 restriction imposed by the Biden administration that prohibited the practice. Hunters will be able to use items such as bacon, doughnuts, and meat scraps to attract trophy animals for close-range shooting.

The department did not specify which foods are allowed in the federal rule. Instead, it defers to state regulations, which currently permit baiting. Nicholas Arrivo, a managing attorney at Animal Protection Law, noted that hunters typically select high-fat and high-sugar foods because they are cheap and effective. He described the standard procedure as placing the food in a steel drum or garbage can, keeping watch over it, and shooting the bear from a nearby blind at short range.

Interior secretary Doug Burgum described the change as a commonsense framework in a press release. He said the rule responds to demands from Alaska residents and gives them a stronger voice in decisions affecting the lands and wildlife they know best. The move follows an executive order signed by Donald Trump early in his second administration, titled Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential, which directed the rule to be reissued.

Critics argue the practice is a political favor to trophy hunters and poses risks to public safety. Drew Robertson, senior regulatory specialist for Humane World for Animals, called the baiting provision cruel and dangerous. He stated that many hunters would not view the method as a fair chase because it is a more extreme practice than traditional hunting. Environmental groups have labeled the new measure indefensible and inexcusable.

The history of bear baiting on federal lands has been marked by repeated reversals. The Obama administration first imposed a ban, which the first Trump administration reversed. Litigation upheld the Obama rule and overturned the Trump rule. The Biden administration reinstated the ban in 2024, citing science indicating that baiting makes bears more aggressive and endangers park visitors.

Arrivo questioned the legality of the new rule, noting that Congress created the federal land program to place decision-making power with the federal government. He said the current approach is contrary to federal land management goals of preserving wildlife diversity. No decision has been made on a lawsuit challenging the rule, but Arrivo said the process raises questions because the 2024 rule went through a more rigorous scientific review.

The change is part of a series of recent moves by federal and Alaska officials to permit contested hunting methods. These include shooting bears from helicopters, shooting swimming caribou from motor boats, killing wolf pups in their dens, and using artificial lights to draw bears out of dens. While bear baiting is allowed in about a dozen states, it is not universal.