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Kathy Wills, manager of six food shelves, says she received 1,500 pounds of ground venison through the program this fall.
“It’s definitely not going to stick around for long,” Wills said. Her organization, Family Pathways, has locations in Forest Lake, Onamia, Cambridge, North Branch, Lindstrom and Sandstone. Wills said the meat is flying off shelves and she expects it to last about a month.
Last winter, lawmakers earmarked money and raised nonresident hunting fees to pay for processing of up to 4,000 deer killed and donated by Minnesota deer hunters.
“It’s fantastic,” Wills said. “I know our food shelf in Onamia had about 129 pounds last year, but (one processor) has already given us 790 pounds. Our freezers are stocked full, thanks to deer hunters.”
The state doesn’t have a final tally on donated deer yet, but a St. Paul Pioneer Press sampling of participating meat processors indicates each facility processed around 20 to 30 deer. With 70 participating processors, the number of donated deer could be about 2,000.
“I don’t think we’ll reach 4,000 to 5,000 deer,” said Rep. Rick Hansen, D-South St. Paul, who authored the venison legislation and donated a doe. “But I think the program will grow, and we’ll see more processors involved in the future.”
Hunters can drop off whole, hide-on deer at participating meat processors, and the state reimburses the processors $70 for each donated deer they grind into venison burger. The processors give the meat to a food pantry.
Minnesota’s deer donation programs started in 2004 when groups such as the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association got local hunters to give deer to food pantries. About 300 deer were being donated annually, but hunters had to pay the $50 to $70 processing fee themselves.
This year, lawmakers approved a one-time allocation of $160,000 and raised nonresident hunting licenses by $5 to pay for processing. Next year, $13 bonus deer hunting permits — which allow hunters to shoot extra deer — will increase by $1.
This fall, hunters were asked to voluntarily donate $1, $3 or $5 to the program, but contributions were lower than the $200,000 expected. As of last week, 23,000 of the 427,000 adult deer hunters contributed to the program, raising about $50,000.
“I’m disappointed,” said Lou Cornicelli, DNR big-game program coordinator. “It’s not that they didn’t want to contribute, but some license vendors weren’t asking hunters if they wanted to donate to the program.”
Several processors said their hunting customers didn’t know they could donate deer free this year. Tony VonBank, of Von Hanson’s Meats of Eagan, said he processed 20 donated deer but found many hunters didn’t know about the program.
Charlie Cory, of Big Steer Meats in St. Paul, said he often found himself promoting the program.
“I hope the program expands,” said Cory, who has processed about 100 deer. “You’re doing a service and hopefully helping someone who needs it.”
Hunters participating in the muzzleloader and archery deer seasons still can donate deer. The muzzleloader season ends Sunday; the archery season on Dec. 31.
Wisconsin’s venison program, which relies on donations and state money, has operated since 2000. Hunters there donate 6,000 to 10,000 deer annually.
