GREENVILLE, Pa. — Pennsylvania’s Hunters Sharing the Harvest venison donation program is anticipating another record-breaking year of donations and is looking for funding support to sustain its growth.
Pennsylvania hunters broke a record for venison donations with 261,672 pounds of venison donated from 6,905 deer and six elk statewide during the 2023-24 hunting seasons. The record donations resulted in more than 1 million individual servings of venison.
Hunters pay nothing to donate a deer at one of HSH’s 100-plus participating processors across the state. Instead, the organization reimburses those processors for every deer donated. Last season, those reimbursement costs reached an all-time high of approximately $500,000.
Of particular concern are rising costs associated with deer donated via hunting opportunities aimed at reducing crop damage by deer on farmers’ fields. Programs such as Ag Tag (formerly Red Tag), Deer Management Assistance Program and crop depredation permits are becoming more widely used due to communication efforts by the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, legislators and advocacy groups. While helping HSH feed more families, crop damage deer are the driving factor in HSH’s rising operational expenses and a cause for increased financial need for the organization, according to executive director Randy Ferguson.
The organization is seeking additional financial support from individual donors, corporate sponsors, other charitable organizations and state agencies.
Hunters interested in donating a deer need only to legally harvest, tag and field dress the deer and take it to a participating processor near them. The list of participating processors by county can be found at sharedeer.org/meat-processors.
A volunteer force of nearly 60 county coordinators ensures that processors have the resources they need and that the public is aware of the program and the ways they can support the HSH mission. Those interested in being a coordinator are encouraged to visit sharedeer.org/get-involved.
Potential business sponsors should contact Ferguson at 866-474-2141 or email him at randy@sharedeer.org.Individual donors can donate online at sharedeer.org/support-our-mission.
