Indiana hunters encouraged to donate deer to feed the hungry

Indiana Conservation Officers encourage Indiana hunters to donate harvested deer to help feed Hoosiers in need.

“Venison harvested through hunting is an important source of nourishment for Hoosier families,” said Col. Steve Hunter, director of DNR Law Enforcement. “Through Hunt for Hunger, hunters can donate a deer and expand that generous impact to even more Hoosiers in need across the state.”

Hunt for Hunger, a program administered by the DNR Division of Law Enforcement, provides grants to the division’s nonprofit partners, including Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry, the Dubois County Sportsmen Club, and Hunters and Farmers Feeding the Hungry, to pay for meat processing fees when hunters donate legally harvested deer.

Participating in the program is simple:

Enjoy a deer hunting experience.

Harvest a deer.

Drop off the field-dressed deer at a local participating processor.

Processing fees are paid for by Hunt for Hunger (no cost to the donating hunter).

The processor creates healthy venison burger to distribute to food banks.

The participating organizations notify food banks throughout Indiana when venison is ready to be collected from certified Hunt for Hunger processors. The food banks distribute venison to soup kitchens and food pantries. 

More than 500,000 pounds of venison have been donated by Hoosier hunters since the program’s inception in 2008.
 
For information on donating harvested deer and a list of participating processors, please visit on.IN.gov/huntforhunger.