"Deer Donation Registry"

Sponsored by the North Carolina Bowhunters Association
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The North Carolina Bowhunters Association (NCBA) provides this service "FREE of charge" to the public.

It is a well known fact that venison and the meat of other wild game animals is one of the healthiest sources of food available.  Hunters know this and scientific studies show that the meat of wild game, such as deer, elk, moose, caribou and other species of wild game have as much as six times less fat than domestic meats purchased from your local grocery stores.  It is lean, clean red meat that many outdoorsmen and women use to supplement their families diets in these modern times.  Some still rely solely on the meat of wild game to feed their families.

In North Carolina, as in many other states, we have a burgeoning population of whitetail deer in some areas of the state.  All of North Carolina's 100 counties are populated by whitetail deer to some extent.  The average hunter in N.C. only harvests (kills) about 1.3 deer per year.  But,  the legal bag limit is virtually unlimited since the NC Wildlife Resources Commission added "Bonus Antlerless Deer Tags" in 2007.  There is no limit to how many "Bonus" tags a hunter can acquire or possess.  Thus,  there is really no limit to how many deer he/she can kill.  The problem is that hunters have limited storage or freezer space to put the processed meat.  When their freezers are full, they either stop hunting for the season,  or if they do continue,  they focus on shooting only a trophy buck or continue to allow many doe deer to walk away. 

Bioligists will quickly tell you that in order to gain control of our exploding deer population and be able to manage it, we have to harvest more doe (female) deer.  This wasn't the case a couple generations ago.  Our deer population was still expanding to parts of the state where deer had not inhabited for over a century.  Market hunting for deer and other wildlife almost exterminated our whitetail deer population in North America.  The same happened to buffalo, pronghorn antelope and elk.  We don't want this to happen again. We also don't want to harvest too many deer and reduce the population to low numbers that will discourage modern day hunters from continuing to hunt either! We need more hunters,  but we still need a sufficient hunt-able population of deer that will attract new hunters into the sport and retain those hunters we already have.  We also have to put forth some effort to establish a good "quality deer management" program that will continue to help us grow more trophy buck deer.  This too will help retain and recruit more hunters into the sport of modern deer hunting.  If hunting is going to survive, we need to provide not only a hunt-able population of deer,  but we must do all we can to protect our population of quality buck deer.  Programs that foster "Quality Deer Management" (QDM) also promote removing excess doe deer,  so these efforts help achieve both goals at the same time. Other states have long been putting forth much effort in this direction.  If wildlife officials in North Carolina would simply sit up and take notice of what is being done and accomplished in other states with these type programs, there is no reason why we cannot do the same thing here in our state.

REFERENCE the "Deer Donation Registry"... Here's how it works..  We will publish a roster of names and telephone numbers and sort them by their county of residence.  We will get this list,  or roster of names from people who learn about our program via the news media and other sources, and who also desire to acquire venison for their own personal use and need.  These people could be hunters themselves,  or non-hunters. They could be elderly people or young... anyone!  In order to be listed in our registry, they will have to convey to us via email, or U.S. Mail,  their "Name, telephone number and county of residence."    We will simply publish this information on our webpage.  Hunters can access this information, listed by county of residence.  Hunters should call the person on the registry roster ahead of time and make arrangements to deliver the deer to them at a later date,  after it is harvested.  It is the responsibility of the "recipient" of the deer (or feral hog) carcass to skin, quarter and take care of processing the animal themselves, or paying a meat processing shop to do so.  The only responsibility the hunter has is to field dress the animal and deliver it to the recipient at a pre-determined time and location.  If the hunter wants to assist in skinning and quartering the animal, it is his/her choice to do so,  but they may not accept any fee or donation for doing so. It is the recipients responsibility to pay someone to process and package the meat.  Recipients should understand that they will be receiving a "fresh" kill that will require someone to skin, quarter and process the animal.  They are also responsible for disposing of waste and unusable parts in a legal and proper manner.

YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS stays on the "Registry" until you tell us to remove it.  Please advise if your phone number or county of residence changes.

NCBA will also begin compiling a list of meat processing/butcher shops across the state and list them by county to assist citizens in locating a place to get the deer processed.

For those who may want to process their own deer,  there are scores of references on the internet telling "How-To" butcher and process deer.  Simply search the words,  "Butchering Deer" and a long list of resources and information will pop up on your monitor..

NOTE: "Transfer of Wildlife"..   The law states that an individual may accept the "gift" of wildlife lawfully taken within North Carolina if taking possession does not cause the individual to exceed applicable possession limits. The individual must note and preserve in writing the name an address of the donor (hunter), and under what license requirements the wildlife was taken.  It is unlawful to accept the gift of wildlife lawfully taken unless you possess, in writing, teh donor's name, address and hunting license number.  We have prepared a form that will fulfill all the requirements of the law.  Click HERE to view the form.  You can also print it and make additional copies as needed.  Both the "donor" (hunter) and the "recipient" of the wildlife should complete the form and retain a copy of it for their records.

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It's Working:

First "Hit" we know of: (12/2/2008).. "Received a call from a Mr. Nifong today and picked up a deer.. Thanks,  Bobby Golding" (Davidson County)

KNOW YOUR CUTS OF "DEER" MEAT:

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Click on the FHFH logo (left) to see another alternative for dispersing your excess bounty of wild game meat..

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A Report from the

NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Incorporated 1871

11250 Waples Mill Road - Fairfax , VA 22030

For Immediate Release
December 5, 2008

For More Information, Contact:
J.R. Robbins (703) 267-1415

                             Minnesota Venison Donation Testing Expensive, Unfounded

FAIRFAX, Va.—For generations, hunters have been shooting deer with lead bullets and eating the venison with no ill effects. In fact, there is not one documented case of a citizen ever becoming ill because of eating venison taken with a rifle bullet. 

Moreover, a recent CDC study, in which more than 700 North Dakota residents were tested for lead levels, found not one single individual with unacceptably high amounts of lead in the blood. That study was requested by the North Dakota Department of Health in response to allegations made earlier this year that venison intended for food banks contained excessive levels of lead.

Now, Minnesota is set to test up to 25,000 pounds of venison intended for food banks in the state, having the meat X-rayed before it is distributed. The decision came when random testing revealed that 5.3 percent of sampled deer meat contained “lead fragments.”

 uch overreaction is expensive. Testing the meat will lighten the state’s coffers to the tune of 30 cents a pound.

But the unnecessary expense is not the only problem. The testing will delay the delivery of badly needed food to hungry families. It’s being collected from all over the state and moved to the Twin Cities for testing. State officials are even considering eliminating its game donation program altogether.

All of this in light of some concrete facts:

• Humans have been consuming game shot with traditional lead ammunition for more than a century with no documented health problems.
• All individuals tested in the CDC study who consumed game harvested with lead ammunition had blood lead levels below an unsafe level.
• Lead ammunition alternatives are expensive and more difficult to obtain.
• Most other state wildlife agencies have publicly called for hunters to continue donating meat to Hunters for the Hungry programs.

When states like Minnesota show nervousness over venison’s imaginary health concerns, anti-hunting groups use it to object to the use of lead ammunition. The Humane Society of the United States , for example, recently called for a ban on all lead ammunition.

Such unfounded fears hurt hunters, hungry people facing uncertain economic times, and, ultimately, game populations, for game sharing programs play a key role in helping states reach their wildlife management objectives.

Calls to ban lead ammunition, clearly lacking in scientific evidence, will ultimately do more harm than good. Minnesota ’s testing program is needlessly flaming that fire.

 For more information on this developing story, visit www.NRAhuntersrights.org.

USSA Denounces Minnesota Hysteria Over Lead in Venison

State Overreacting to Test Results
12/10/08

The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) denounces a recent decision by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture to expand X-ray testing to all venison donated to food shelters through the state’s Harvested Venison Donation Program.

Expanding the x-ray requirement will increase program costs by thirty cents a pound and might lead to the program’s elimination. The programcurrently donates between 20,000 and 25,000 pounds of meat to food pantries.

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s decision came after state studies indicated that 5.3 percent of venison that had been sampled and used in the program contained lead.

Besides helping the needy, the Harvested Venison Donation Program encouraged hunters to help control deer numbers. 

“Hunters have been feeding their families with deer taken by lead bullets since firearms were invented,” said Rick Story, senior vice president of the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance. “People have simply not contracted lead poisoning from wild game.”

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) undercut the hysteria surrounding the issue of lead in venison, issuing a report about neighboring North Dakota hunters that consumed significant quantities of game taken with lead ammunition. It showed that none of the 700 individuals tested had levels that concern the health agency.   While appropriate processing of meat was suggested by the North Dakota Department of Health in response to the report, it failed to suggest food pantries stop accepting venison.

“Knee jerk reactions make poor public policy. The USSA hopes that the Minnesota Department of Agriculture will reassess their decision as quickly as possible,” Story said.