Hunters can help feed the hungry
By DAVID RAINER Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Now that Alabama's lengthy white-tailed deer season is only three weeks from ending, many hunters have already taken enough deer to fill their freezers.

That means it would be a perfect time to share nature's bounty with those less fortunate by participating in the Hunters Helping the Hungry program, which provides a method for hunters to donate thousands of pounds of ground venison to needy families and individuals in the state.

Since the program's inception in 1999, more than 400,000 pounds of ground venison have been donated to food banks in the state, and Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) officials expect to surpass the 450,000- pound mark by the end of the 2007-2008 season.

The ground venison makes a significant contribution to the meals distributed to the needy, according to food bank officials.

Helen Walker of Food Bank of Northwest Alabama in Muscle Shoals, which serves 72 pantries in four counties, praised the benefits of the program.

"It's great, because it's just like ground beef," Walker said. "It's packaged in two-pound packages and wrapped in butcher paper. It's easy to use. All of our pantries order it. They order it a lot. They're glad to get it.

"It comes in handy to supplement the other meat we get. We seldom get ground beef. Venison is a great protein source. It doesn't have any fat, so the elderly can eat it."

Walker said the problem is the supply is unable to keep up with the demand.

"We get a lot of deer meat during the season, and it goes fast," she said. "As soon as we get it, it goes right out the door. We've been getting it long enough that the pantries know to ask for it."

Walker said the food kitchens typically prepare spaghetti, chili, meat loaf, stews or patties.

"At this time of the year, we haven't had any ground beef for a while," she said. "What we get comes from the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) once or twice a year. So this really comes in handy. It does fill that gap."

Walker admits there were more than a few people who were a little leery about consuming venison for the first time, but that reluctance disappeared quickly.

"They learned really quickly to like it and now it's one of our most popular items," she said. "Just few weeks ago, one pantry got some deer meat and then issued it without telling anybody what it was.

"One pantry director told me he had a lady that came back and wanted more of that really good ground beef she got last week. The director didn't say a word, just went in and got her some more venison."

Parke Hinman, director of the Montgomery Area Food Bank, said the facility received 4,182 pounds in 2007. He said that would supply the meat portion of the meal for more than 15,000 people.

"It has a very positive impact," Hinman said of Hunters Helping the Hungry. "That venison is a very good meat. Meats are the things that are hardest for us to get. The agencies get it free of charge and it's very popular.

"To be honest with you, some who haven't eaten venison are a little hesitant. But we tell them it's better than hamburger and doesn't have the fat. They don't complain after they've tried it. It's a very popular meat."

Hunters who wish to participate in the program should field dress the deer and take it to a participating processor. A list of deer processors is available at http://www.outdooralabama.co m/hunting/HelpingHungry/Parti cipating Processors 2007- 2008.pdf

There is no charge to the hunter to donate the venison, although hunters may voluntarily pay processing fees to provide more venison for food banks to distribute. The processors receive $1 per pound from the Alabama Conservation and Natural Resources Foundation.

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