Herald Staff Report
Published Thursday, September 25, 2008

For now, at least, North Dakota’s Sportsmen Against Hunger program this fall will only accept deer taken by archery.

North Dakota’s Community Action Partnership announced the decision today in a news release and said it is seeking donations from archery deer hunters.

According to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, about 17,000 hunters purchased archery tags this year.

“Meat is a valuable staple for our food pantries, and we encourage bow hunters who have harvested an animal they don’t need to donate it to this program,” said Ann Pollert, coordinator of Sportsmen Against Hunger. “We will use it to help feed the hungry.”

The decision to accept only deer taken by archery results from a study published last spring, in which portions of ground venison from rifle-killed deer were found to contain lead fragments. In response to the news, the North Dakota Health Department told food shelves to throw away some 4,000 pounds of ground venison.

Minnesota later followed suit, ordering food shelves to dispose of about six tons of ground venison.

With archery season in full swing, Pollert said sporting clubs and even nonhunters can support the venison program through financial donations to cover processing costs.

“This program is a win-win for everyone, but funding for processing the meat is the bottleneck,” Pollert said. “Emergency food providers could accept over 71,000 pounds of venison — that’s about 1,400 animals.

“But with current funding, we aren’t able to come even close to that amount.”

Meantime, findings from a May study to see whether eating wild game results in higher levels of lead in the blood will determine whether the program accepts rifle-killed deer when the firearms season begins in November.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted the study in conjunction with the state Department of Health, testing nearly 700 North Dakota residents, and a final report is expected in mid-October.

Minnesota officials earlier this month announced they will resume accepting venison for food shelves, but the state will increase its screening of meat to test for lead fragments. Processors also will receive training to minimize the risk, and food shelves only will accept whole cuts — not ground venison.

For more information on North Dakota’s program, archery hunters can contact their nearest local Community Action Agency or Pollert at (701) 232-2452. A list of participating processors also is available on the Game and Fish Web site at gf.nd.gov or the North Dakota Community Action Partnership site at www.capnd.org.