Editing Pemmican Proclamation (section)

== Pemmican Trade ==
For the settlers living near the Red River on the edge of the prairie, the Pemmican Trade was an important source of trade for the Red River Valley, almost comparable to what the beaver-pelt trade did for the Natives farther north. This trade was a major factor in the emergence of a distinct Métis society. [[Métis buffalo hunt#Pemmican trade|Pemmican]] was made of dried buffalo meat pounded into a powder and mixed with melted buffalo fat in leather bags. Packs of pemmican would be shipped north and stored at the major fur posts. Ultimately, the Pemmican trade began to establish its position within the Red River and other parts of the prairies, the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), and North West Company (NWC).<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Rich|first=E.|date=1960|title=rade Habits and Economic Motivation Among Indians of North America|journal=Journal of Economic and Political Science|volume=2635-53}}</ref>

To procure pemmican in sufficient quantities, the HBC and NWC traded for it at several outposts in the Red River District and shipped it to their [[Bas de la Rivière]] depot on Lake Winnipeg where it was distributed to brigades of north canoes passing between [[Fort William, Ontario|Fort William]] and [[Athabasca Country|Athabasca]] or transported to Fort William where it was issued to brigades going to the company's eastern and southern districts. The majority of the NWC's pemmican was purchased from the local Métis and to a lesser degree from the local First Nations people and freemen. The pemmican, which forms the staple article of produce from the summer hunt, is a species of food peculiar to [[Rupert's Land]]. It is composed of buffalo meat, dried and pounded fine, and mixed with an amount of [[tallow]] or buffalo fat equal to itself in bulk. The tallow having been boiled, is poured hot from the caldron into an oblongbag, manufactured from the buffalo hide, into which the pounded meat has previously been placed. The contents are then stirred together until they have been thoroughly well mixed. When full, the bag is sewed up and laid in store. Each bag when full weighs one hundred pounds. It is calculated that, on an average, the carcass of each buffalo will yield enough pemmican to fill one bag<ref>{{Cite book|title=Red River|last=Hargrave|first=Joseph|publisher=Harvard Library|year=1871}}</ref>

Ultimately, the pemmican trade was a major factor for the expanding provisions that were being streamlined and developed within the Red River Area, as well as Winnipeg and other parts of the Prairies located between Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The two Major trading companies which were the Hudson's Bay Company and North-West Company began establishing various territories and boundaries where they could exercise the Pemmican trade. Both the HBC and the NWC needed to establish their trade routes in the area to secure the economic benefits of Pemmican. Therefore, the need to establish a trade route led to conflict between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North West Company that erupted in 1812.

"In 1812, the Hudson’s Bay Company established the Selkirk agricultural colony on the banks of the Red River. This posed a strategic threat to the North West Company since the colony lay astride its provision supply line in that quarter. The seriousness of the danger was manifest in the winter of 1814. The colony was seriously short of provisions."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Raty|first=Arthur J.|date=2008|title=The Northern Great Plains: Pantry of the Northwestern Fur Trade, 1774–1885|journal=University of Regina|volume=61}}</ref>

The need for the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company to establish a suitable route of transportation for the Pemmican trade would be vital in securing economic prosperity. The Red River was beginning to see an increase in settlements and trading posts erecting in the area, as the Red River served as a vital mode of transportation. The NWC had previously built a strong relationship with the Metis, and ultimately the NWC positioned themselves as defenders of the Natives and Métis, and thus became opponents of the HBC colonization scheme that would illegally dispossess the native peoples. Furthermore, it was vital for these companies to secure an alliance when trading Pemmican because the native expertise in buffalo hunting would serve as the most productive way obtaining Pemmican ingredients.<ref name=":0" /> Also, since there had been a food shortage in these areas since 1776, Pemmican became a prominent source of food in the Red River settlements. Pemmican would be an important food source during the winter months and would serve as an offset or back-up to inconsistent crop-growth within settlements. With the food shortage however came an increase in the price and trade of Pemmican.

"In such circumstances, Indian suppliers drove up prices on provisions offered to Europeans. While volumes increased to meet European demands by the turn of the century, so did the traded value, or price, of these commodities, especially in areas hard hit by changing game conditions. In 1801 intense local competition between traders raised prices overall. Lower Red River outfits, by then supplying massive amounts of food to the trading companies, priced depot pemmican at an astronomical shilling per pound—in better circumstances, Europeans could get it for a quarter or less than that".<ref name="colpitts179"/>

The increased price of Pemmican, combined with the food shortage and tensions between the settlement of HBC and NWC territories ultimately developed into conflict. Tensions erupted in the end, which contributed to one of Rupert's Land more chaotic turns in 1814 with “The Pemmican Proclamation,” which attempted to regulate and control pemmican production by rival companies. This very issue sparked the bloody Battle of Seven Oaks in 1816, which saw the Métis clash with settlers who had earlier seized and now competed for the high-priced food supplies of the NWC coming from the Assiniboine River.