Venison Lead

[HD]

I read the paper this morning, this is what I found.

I find this disturbing, I want to know what everybody else thinks.

Hunter

BISMARCK, N.D. - State health officials have told food pantries in North Dakota to throw out donated venison after fragments from lead bullets were found in the meat.
Tests on at least five samples of venison destined for food pantries had high levels of lead, said Sandi Washek, the Health Department's lead coordinator. A doctor who conducted his own tests also found lead in 60 percent of 100 samples.
Washek said about 17,000 pounds of venison were donated this year through the Sportsmen Against Hunger program. There are about 4,000 to 5,000 pounds still in the 110 pantries that received donations, she said Wednesday.
"We're asking all the food pantries to throw it out in a landfill and not throw it out on garbage day, so no one will rifle through it," she said.
Health officials say children age 6 and younger and pregnant women are at greater risk for lead poisoning, which can cause confusion, learning problems and convulsions, and in severe cases can lead to brain damage and death. Washek said no sickness has been reported from lead-tainted venison.
Dr. William Cornatzer, a Bismarck physician and long-time hunter, said he collected about 100 one-pound packages of ground venison from food pantries in December, with the help of health officials.
"Sixty percent of the packages had multiple fragments of lead in them — I about fell out of my chair," said Cornatzer, a long-time hunter.
Many of the fragments are microscopic, but can still cause harm to humans if ingested, Cornatzer said. "What's very scary about this is you can't feel them — they're like lead dust," he said.
He failed to get a deer this year but his son did, with lead ammunition, and that meat was later discarded.
"Unless the deer was shot with a bow, or low velocity like a shotgun slug, as a physician, my recommendation would be not to eat it," Cornatzer said.

[UncleDave]

It's a shame, but what are they supposed to do?  If they keep giving it away someone could get sick.  Lawsuits galore.

[Don Stenseth]

How do I feel about this? All the Venison I have ate in my day if lead poisoning has'nt got me by now it never will. I'll take 50 lbs or so.

[Faceman]

How do I feel about this? All the Venison I have ate in my day if lead poisoning has'nt got me by now it never will. I'll take 50 lbs or so.

DITTO

[Duckslayer]

Unless there are a lot of folks out there using buck shot how could 60% of it have lead?  A slug or rifle bullet does not leave that much lead behind!  I usually cut away any meat that has been damaged by the slug anyway.  I do not understand how that could happen.  Maybe they were hit by chineese cars that had too much lead in the paint? 

Take care and N Joy the Hunt././Jimbo

[Bobby Bass]

Now that is some wanton waste...

[C.C. Waters]

  It is the "K"alifornia mentality slowly working its way crossed our nation.... Sad indeed...

Reminds me of the following ....

WHEN WE WERE KIDS!!


TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930's 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's !!

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they
carried us.

They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing and didn't get tested for
diabetes.

Then after that trauma, our baby cribs were covered with bright colored
lead-based paints.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we
rode our bikes, we had no helmets, not to mention, the risks we took
hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.

Riding in the back of a pick up on a warm day was always a special treat.

We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE
actually died from this.

We ate cupcakes, bread and butter and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but
we weren't overweight because WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back
when the streetlights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.

We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then ride down
the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes. After running into the
bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.

We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no
99 channels on cable, no video tape movies, no surround sound, no cell
phones, no personal computers, no Internet or Internet chat
rooms..........WE HAD FRIENDS and we went outside and found them!

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no
lawsuits from these accidents.

We made up games with sticks and tennis balls and ate worms and although we
were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes, nor did the
worms live in us forever.

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them!

Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment. Imagine that!!

The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!

This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever!

The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.

We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned HOW TO DEAL WITH IT ALL!

And YOU are one of them! CONGRATULATIONS!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!

You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids, before the lawyers and the government regulated our lives for our own good.

[HD]

I just found it odd, that there could be that much lead in the meat.

All the deer that I have shot, have had an enterance and and exit wound.

So, the bullet passed through, sure ya hit a rib or two. So, my thinking, the bullet stayed together.

Something just doesn't seem right about the story.

If ya read the whole artical in the paper.....It just doesn't quite sit right.

I don't know why...............


Hunter

[deadeye]

I have recovered a lot bullets from deer over the years.  I never had one blow up like they described.  I kinda smell a rat here......hmmm

[3willy]

am still alive and have eaten plenty of venision, maybe the beer or 2 that went with it counter acted the lead and that's why i onlt twitch a little.

[HD]

Maybe it's just the way the story was writen in the paper, like a "anti-hunter" wrote it.

It just grated against my nerve.............................



Hunter

[Cody Gruchow]

well i dont understand this one bit, are people shooting lead bird shot at these deer or what, i agree with hunter maybe this has something to do with the anti's.

[proangler16]

There's something definitly fishy going on for sure.  Although through all the deer I've skinned and processed over the years I have found quite a few rounds and even broadheads in deer that have healed over especially in the bigger bucks.  I can recall one buck I harvested that had that I counted two different broadheads and over 23 .22cal LR bullets throughout the deer, you could see the calloused up wounds after the hide was off and could then dig out the broadheads and .22 rounds.  That deer lived a rough life before he got to me.  It could just be that the venison in questoin was meat that had something like this too.   

[HD]

I've seen that too.

We processed over 500 deer last year, and we've found broad heads and bullets.

I'm also wondering if they just didn't check it while processing it, or didn't care to look, or what.

The story just seemed incomplete....and seemed one sided.


Hunter

[Cody Gruchow]

like i said its like its blaming hunters for the bad meat. and thats interesting proangler that you found so many 22 bullets like someone was trying to poach that deer or something. things like that    me off. now the broadheads and such is an excellent example on why you should wait for a clean shot and practice alot.

[tripnchip]

C.C. Waters, loved your post and remember those days well. All's I can say is I have been eating venison since I was old enough to chew it and I'm still here. Oh I have 50 yeas of leagel deer hunting behind me lol

[HD]

I just got this from the DNR, just an update on this subject.........

Hunter


News Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DNR bullet study arms hunters with information (October 7, 2008)

With the “early antlerless” deer season opening Saturday, results of a preliminary study about how certain bullets break up and disperse on impact provide more information for hunters heading out to the field. The results add emphasis to previous venison safety messages from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) recommending pregnant women and children under six do not eat any venison harvested using ammunition that results in deposition of lead particles in meat.

There is currently no health-based standard or guideline for consumption of lead fragments by older children or adults, according to the MDH.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) conducted the research this spring to offer more detail to hunters in response to earlier concerns about lead particles in hunter-harvested venison donated to local food shelves.

The research indicates lead particles are commonly found farther from the wound channel than many hunters might assume and that the number of lead fragments varies widely by bullet type. Hunters with concerns about these findings can use this information to minimize exposure to lead fragments through ammunition selection.

In addition to showing increased fragmentation by some lead bullets, the DNR study indicates that most lead particles in venison will be too small to see, feel or sense when chewing.

Results of the study showed that shotgun slugs and muzzleloader bullets generally fragmented much less than high-powered rifle bullets, said Lou Cornicelli, DNR big game program coordinator and study participant. Much of southern and western Minnesota is in the shotgun zone.

“This research arms hunters with more information that they can use to make informed decisions,” said Dave Schad, director of the DNR Fish and Wildlife Division. “We’ve long known venison is a great source of lean, healthy protein. Our research will help hunters ensure that’s exactly what they are serving themselves and others.” “We wanted to be as responsive as possible to hunters in providing this information before deer season,” added DNR Commissioner Mark Holsten. “However, everyone must use their best judgement about the ammunition they use and how they dress and process their own venison.”

The DNR’s announcement is timely as the state’s first firearms deer season opens Saturday. Called the “early antlerless firearms season,” it is open only in certain locations and attracts about 5 percent of total deer hunters. Schad said by releasing the information before the early antlerless and Nov. 8 general deer season hunters will “be able to act on this new information if it is it appropriate for their situation.”

STUDY DESIGN

The controlled study, the first of its type, involved the shooting of different types of .308 caliber rifle bullets, a 12-gauge shotgun slug and two types of .50 caliber muzzleloader bullets into the carcasses of previously euthanized sheep.

Sheep were used surrogates for white-tailed deer because they have similar anatomy and weigh about the same as mid-sized deer. Researchers then shot sheep from a standard distance. Sheep were x-rayed at the University of Minnesota Small Animal Hospital to determine the number of fragments and the degree of fragmentation. The University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory completed the chemical analysis of lead levels.

HEALTH IMPLICATIONS

Exposure to lead can be harmful for both children and adults, and it may not always produce visible symptoms, according to the MDH.

Pregnant women and younger children are especially sensitive because they absorb most of the lead they take in, and the brains of infants and young children are still developing. Although lead is also toxic for adults, they are less sensitive to the effects of lead and absorb less of the lead they take in.

Older children and other adults can continue to enjoy hunting and eating venison. However, they should take steps to minimize their potential exposure to lead, and use their judgment about consuming game that was taken using lead-based ammunition.

VENISON DONATION PROGRAM

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) recently announced a series of changes in the state’s venison donation program to help prevent the donation of meat contaminated with lead fragments.

One of the new safeguards is a requirement that processors participating in the program attend a training seminar focused on best practices to prevent contamination. According to MDA Dairy and Food Inspection Director Heidi Kassenborg, the response from processors has been positive.

“Everyone involved in the program has a responsibility to help address this issue, and processors are interested in doing their part to ensure consumer safety,” Kassenborg said. “To verify the effectiveness of the changes we’ve made, MDA will be testing random samples of donated product by X-ray to detect any lead fragments.”

Hunters are encouraged to continue to donate to this important program, she added.

For further study details and more information on lead in venison, go to http://mndnr.gov/lead.

[Auggie]

Do you remember what that little dead sheep shooting study cost us? Over $30,000. What a waste of time and $ IMHO. Tell us something new. Been eating game for over 30 years and no lead poisoning yet.

The people that received the donation should be happy to have food on their plate instead of complaining about it. And don't get me wrong, I am sure most were very pleased to get it and needed it. But for the ones that are so concerned they could get a job and forget about handouts. You can bet your a$$ the ones complaining are lifelong members of the handout programs. This is one big reason I do not participate in the donation program for venison. I donate mine to people that I know appreciate or need it. I spend the time processing it and pay for any of the goodies like sausage and the like myself.

[HD]

That's about what I was think'in Augg's............What a waste of cash!

I've been eating game for over 35 years.....an, I......an, I........an, I........an, I....Where was I going with this?

Oh yea!......I don't have any health issues.....    
(Maybe a little short term memory loss, and that twitch I have, ain't noth'in!)


But seriously, you prolly get more lead in your system from drinking city water than you do from eating game! But, I suppose they have to spend our license dollars on something......


Hunter