The face of natural resource conservation at Federal Ammunition for the past 12 years lost his position last week in a job cut that caused a national stir on social media.
Ryan Bronson, only the third person since 1935 to lead Federal's conservation program, said Monday on Twitter that the two-man conservation staff at Federal's parent company, Vista Outdoor, was "terminated." He and Jon Zinnel, the second in command, lost their jobs, the tweet said.
The announcement elicited concern about Federal's decades-old commitment to wildlife habitat, shooting sports, hunter recruitment and other outdoor causes. The Anoka-based maker of ammo for hunting and target shooting has been a private-sector standout in those matters.
"We are saddened and concerned at this turn of events,'' the Council to Advance Hunting and the Shooting Sports tweeted from Washington, D.C.
"Holy crap,'' wrote Brian Hiller, a leading professor of wildlife management at Bemidji State University. "... concerned about what this means for the direction of the company.''
Minnesota state Rep. Rick Hansen, D-South St. Paul, also weighed in on Twitter. "The big get bigger and bigger and forget their foundations,'' wrote Hansen, chairman of the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance Division.
Two days later, Federal issued a news release reaffirming its conservation mission and support of shooting sports. Without mentioning Bronson, the statement announced "the addition" of Zinnel as Federal's new conservation and youth shooting program manager.
The move prompted Bronson to update Twitter: "It is important to note that Federal Premium stepped up today and re-created their conservation manager position.''
