As hunters, we are well aware of how we drive and fund conservation efforts. Hunters give through license sales, the purchase of hunting equipment, and by actively managing wildlife. Did you know, though, that you can also help feed the hungry by hunting? Right now millions of people are out of work and struggling. It is more important than ever to do our part to help those in need. Michigan Sportsmen Against Hunger is a non-profit group that was founded in 1991 to enable hunters to donate some of the meat they harvest each year.
Working with a network of hunters, processors, and charities, the group accepts donations of venison and gives it away via food banks. The way it works is simple. You buy a license and go out to hunt. If you kill a deer you’d like to donate, you just field dress it like normal and drop it off at one of dozens of approved processors across the state. You don’t have to pay anything for the processing and just tell the butcher that you’d like to donate the deer to sportsmen against hunger. A list of processors that participate in the program can be found here. They cannot accept donations unless dropped off at an approved processor due to food safety concerns.
Donating a deer each season is a great way to use hunting to give back to our fellow man. I donated my first deer this year and found the process to be very easy. More information about Sportsman Against Hunger can be found on their website. Remember, the next time you’re headed out the door to hunt and your significant other says, “Really, you’re going hunting again,” just tell them that you are going into the woods to help people in need. You get to enjoy hunting for deer, being outside, and the feeling of knowing that you’ve used hunting to give back.
