The Indiana Division of Fish and Wildlife, Indiana DNR Law Enforcement and Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry are jointly encouraging hunters to donate deer to help feed those in need. Hunters donated  879 deer to help stop hunger in 2021. The organizations are hoping to make it to 900 donations this year.

You can help reach this goal by donating your harvested deer to the Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund to help hungry Hoosiers during the upcoming seasons. Last year’s donations provided 181,304 meals. That averages to 206 meals per donation.

The Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund provides grants to Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry, Dubois County Sportsmen Club, and Hunters and Farmers Feeding the Hungry to pay for processing fees when hunters donate legally harvested deer to the program.

The organizations listed the steps to participate. They are:

  1. Enjoy a deer hunting experience.
  2. Harvest your deer.
  3. Drop off your field-dressed deer at a local participating processor (listed below).
  4. Processing fees are paid for by the Sportsmen’s Benevolence Fund.
  5. The processor will create healthy venison burger to distribute to food banks.

Local participating processors can be found on the Hoosiers Feeding the Hungry website: https://www.hoosiersfeedingthehungry.org/ as well as the Dubois County Sportsmen Club website: http://duboiscountysportsmen.org/

Find out more about the program at http://www.in.gov/…/law…/sportsmens-benevolence-fund/

If you have further questions about deer hunting, contact their deer hotline at INDeerHotline@dnr.IN.gov