Do you know what you’re gonna do with your Bambi once you’ve decreased the surplus deer population? The NSSF wants you to know that just one member of the Cervidae family will make 200 meals for people who otherwise might not have one. And since the woods are (or soon will be) full of people sitting in treestands just waiting for an opportunity, they’d like to encourage you to donate at least part of your four-legged catch. Press release after the jump . . .
NEWTOWN, Conn. — Hunters are generous people. More than 11 million meals were provided to the less fortunate through hunters’ donations of game meat in 2010.
As a reminder to all hunters to consider sharing their harvest this autumn with those in need, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) has developed a new video and webpage that encourage making venison donations to food banks and other charitable meal providers. NSSF is the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry . . .
In the video, NSSF Director of Editorial Services Glenn Sapir asks fellow hunters to consider making a donation of game meat this fall if they have the good fortune to tag a deer or other game animal. “I believe that what a person gives is returned many times over,” said Sapir. “I have no doubt that if a hunter makes a venison donation to a local food pantry or church kitchen, he or she will receive great personal satisfaction in knowing they have provided many meals to people in difficult circumstances.”
Acquiring nutritious meat is difficult and expensive, say many charitable food providers. “Without venison donations, some organizations would not have protein to give to people,” said Peter Aldrich, president of Hunt to Feed in Connecticut. With just one deer able to feed 200 people, it’s easy to see how important hunters’ venison donations are to providers.
Programs like Hunt to Feed and others are active in nearly every state, so hunters have plenty of opportunities to participate in a donation program. NSSF’s new Hunters Feed website provides information on how to contact the many active groups that accept game meat donations. If you don’t find an organization near you, NSSF suggests contacting the state wildlife department, a local fish and game club or a nearby food pantry.
“If you have a successful hunting season,” said Sapir, “donating venison is a way to make it an even better and more meaningful one.”
For our Texan readers, please check out TACAA who administers Hunters for the Hungry.
http://tacaa.org/hunters-for-the-hungry
This will be my first year to donate to the program. *Nudge* Dan Zimmerman should do the same when he comes to visit.
In this case, the three bears shared a meal donated from California:
“A 49-year-old California man was mauled by a 600-pound grizzly bear in Alaska’s Denali National Park. Final images from the man’s camera reveal he had been photographing the bear for at least eight minutes before the fatal attack. NBC’s Miguel Almaguer reports”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49427258/ns/us_news/#__utma=14933801.1763423903.1349740635.1350362505.1350393396.57&__utmb=14933801.1.10.1350393396&__utmc=14933801&__utmx=-&__utmz=14933801.1349740635.1.1.utmcsr=(direct)|utmccn=(direct)|utmcmd=(none)&__utmv=14933801.|8=Earned%20By=msnbc%7Ccover=1^12=Landing%20Content=Mixed=1^13=Landing%20Hostname=www.nbcnews.com=1^30=Visit%20Type%20to%20Content=Earned%20to%20Mixed=1&__utmk=141212210
Definately a good news message we need to put out there every year, past that PETA faeces.
While the NSSF is literally in my back yard and I need to pass the office to get to work every day, they do very little in their home state of CT.
CT has had this organization for years http://www.hunttofeed.com/
Many of the local shooting clubs, who have their own land for members to hunt, donate every year. In 2009, some of the Republican state level legislators tried to pass a bill where you could get up to 2 extra hunting tags for donating deer to the food bank — it was promptly shot down by the democratic majority and the voices of PETA and limousine liberals of the state.
BUT!!! When Yale had an over population of deer that they had issues with including various diseases, they called the same hunters they hate to deal with the issue. The best part is they give tags to hunters and then still allow PETA to protest outside the same gates they let the hunters into. I love liberal hypocrisy!
Yes how dare they let people protest
I guess the 1st ammendment gives pita a free speach right. The problem as I see it ,it doesn’t say anything about ones intelligence.
This will shut up the anti-hunters!
Programs like this are great, but keep an eye on the Feds.
While specific programs like NSSF are allowed to keep
their kitchens open; the FDA et al have stepped in and
stopped (or at least tried) your average food shelter
from taking wild game.
If you do take wild game into a food kitchen, call first and
make sure they can take it. Otherwise it may be discarded.
Most any state or food bank will refer you to a state approved butcher. Here in CT it is usually a meat processing plant or distributors or small farms that sell their own meat but have to go though FDA approval and provide the blue stamp of approval.
No food bank will take the deer directly at least none that know of.
I also read last year that some butchers will process for free and have freezer space until the food bank can arrange collection. Others may make a charge.
Where I live, FDA approved butchers/sellers
are few and far between. The added ability isn’t
worth the extra hassle.
All I’m trying to say is call around before you’re
left wondering if your freezer can hold another
200 lbs of steaks.
There’s another option in my part of Arkansas. We have a sanctuary for large cats that have been abused. They need a lot of meat.
Helping our less fortunate neighbers is the kind of thing we did in my youth with out an add campaign. Times have changed, and not for the better.
Some people can be a mite prideful and might prefer the anonymity, but I understand your point.
I have room for 2 decent deer in the freezer, any more go to the local homeless shelter, the butcher processes them gratis.
The PA version: http://sharedeer.org/