Local hunters feed their neighbors in need
Share the Harvest Donate your deer to those who are less fortunate.
Concerned about the hunger that burdens many local families, the Missouri Department of Conservation has found a way to help those families in need. In 1992, the Department started Share the Harvest, a program that provides an easy way for hunters to donate venison to Missourians in need of red meat.
The Conservation Federation and its partners reimburse processors $35 to process whole deer donated to Share the Harvest. For the last 12 years, White River Valley Electric Cooperative’s Operation Round Up (ORU) program has pledged to support the program by picking up the remainder of the processing fees. Hunters who donate their whole deer to Share the Harvest and bring the deer to one of the approved processors will not be charged any processing fees.
“Local hunters have really shown up for their neighbors in need,” said ORU’s Program Coordinator Cindy Rains. “Since WRVEC joined Share the Harvest, our hunting members have donated near 50,000 pounds of meat that go directly to food pantries in their area. We had over 6,000 pounds given just this year.”
For more information on WRVEC’s involvement in Share the Harvest, visit www.whiteriver.org or contact the Missouri Department of Conservation at ww.mdc.mo.gov/hunt/deer/share/.
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