Bacon and doughnuts return to Alaska forests

Starting in mid-November, hunters on federal lands in Alaska may place human food, including bacon, doughnuts, and meat scraps, in steel drums to attract bears. The practice, known as baiting, allows hunters to kill trophy animals at close range from a blind. The new measure replaces a 2024 restriction that had prohibited the use of food lures.

The Department of the Interior published the final rule in the Federal Register on Friday. It takes effect in mid-November, opening a short window for this specific hunting method on federal property. The change reverses a policy established during the Biden administration, which cited scientific evidence suggesting that baiting makes bears more aggressive around people and park visitors.

The shift follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump early in his second term, titled Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential. The order directed federal agencies to reissue the baiting rule. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum stated in a press release that the move responds to demands from Alaska residents. He described the rule as a commonsense framework that gives Alaskans a stronger voice in decisions affecting their lands and wildlife traditions.

Critics argue the change favors trophy hunters over wildlife management. Drew Robertson, senior regulatory specialist for Humane World for Animals, called the provision cruel and dangerous to both wildlife and the public. He noted that many hunters do not view baiting as a fair chase. Robertson added that his group was dismayed to see the rule return, calling it indefensible and inexcusable.

The rule does not specify which foods hunters may use. Instead, it defers to state regulations, which generally permit baiting. Nicholas Arrivo, a managing attorney at Animal Protection Law, explained that hunters typically choose high-fat and high-sugar items because they are cheap and effective. He noted that the federal land program was created to place decision-making power with the federal government, not the state, making the new approach contrary to federal management goals.

This is the latest in a series of changes to hunting methods in Alaska. Recent moves have permitted 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. Bear baiting itself is legal in about a dozen states, though more states prohibit it.

The history of this rule has been marked by litigation. The Obama administration first imposed a ban. The first Trump administration reversed it. Courts upheld the Obama rule and overturned the Trump rule. The Biden administration reinstated the ban in 2024 after a more robust scientific review. Arrivo said that scrapping that process raises questions about the legality of the new rule, although no lawsuit has yet been decided.