Here's a lttle more on this
"St. Paul — While some of the state’s deer hunters are pushing for a state outlay of money to fund a venison donation program, others would like hunters to pay an extra buck to make the program go, while at the same time presumably enhancing their public image.
Either way, the state’s deer-hunting organizations, and DNR leaders, agree the program would be a good thing.
“The program is important; we just need to know how to fund it,†said Lou Cornicelli, DNR big game program coordinator.
Cornicelli said a venison donation program - in which meat processors are certified to participate by the state, hunters donate extra deer for processing, butchers are compensated for their efforts, and venison is provided to participating “food shelves†- has been a topic of discussion in both DNR and legislative hallways for the past few years, and first was introduced in the state Legislature last year.
It failed to go anywhere, partly because many program details hadn’t been determined, and there wasn’t consensus on whether hunters should be charged an extra dollar to fund the program.
That bill, and the one that’s been introduced by Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, this year, would charge hunters $1 to fund the venison donation program. (Hunters would only be charged once - $1. The current general deer license costs $26. It’s the brainchild of the Bluffland Whitetails Association and is modeled after successful programs in the neighboring states of Iowa and Wisconsin. Another bill, one supported by the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association, would request $250,000 from the state’s general fund as well as seek monetary donations from hunters and anyone else. Hansen is carrying that bill, too, but hasn’t introduced it.
Hansen said MDHA members may discuss the matter at an annual meeting this weekend. The $1 surcharge bill is scheduled to be heard in committee on Monday.
“I’m open to finding some kind of middle ground,†Hansen said. A Senate version of the $1 surcharge bill also has been introduced.
“I don’t see this as a lightening rod issue,†Hansen added.
Jim Vagts, a past president of the BWA currently on its board of directors, said he favors a $1 surcharge because it guarantees the money will be available going into the fall hunting season. He also said by footing the bill and participating in the program, state deer hunters would garner greater public support.
“I don’t think it’s necessarily a program (whose costs) should be borne by hunters, but I don’t want to get in line with the rest of the world for general funds,†Vagts said. “And I can’t imagine a better reflection on hunting.â€
Cornicelli said the DNR’s opinion on the matter is that the department would rather not tack on an extra license fee, but that “the program is important. We just need to know how to fund it.â€
He estimates it would take $250,000 to $300,000 to operate a legitimate statewide program. The costs mainly come in the form of the fee charged by deer processors. In Wisconsin, Cornicelli said about 11,000 deer were donated through that state’s program two years ago. He estimates with a statewide program, and given the number of deer harvested in the state, that about half that amount, or about 5,000, would be donated by Minnesota deer hunters. The processing fee per deer generally is $50 to $60, he estimates, because processing for the donation only includes deboning and grinding the meat.
“Statewide, the emphasis has been on deer harvest; we’re asking people to take extra deer,†Cornicelli said of recent rule changes meant to reduce the deer herd in some areas. Changes in the deer herd - up or down - and subsequent changes in the number of doe permits issued, could affect the number of deer donated.
Vagts said a donation program would help the DNR manage the deer herd (while helping landowners with deer “issuesâ€) and also provide venison for food shelves. He said the program, funded by a license fee surcharge, is popular in Iowa.
“Someone in the Iowa DNR told me it was the most widely accepted new program ever started there,†Vagts said.
A non-scientific online poll conducted last year showed a small majority of those offering their opinion favored the program with the surcharge.
Betty Wilkens, of Mora, has helped coordinate the existing venison donation program, in which certain chapters within organizations have coordinated a localized program. An informational website -
www.venisondonationmn.com - is sponsored by the Snake River Chapter of the MDHA.
Wilkens said she helped write in 2004 the policy that rules the current program. It includes the state Department of Agriculture (in charge of meat inspection) and the DNR (in charge of big-game management). According to the website, about 220 deer were donated in 2004 and another 590 were donated in 2005.
Last year, Wilkens said, 18 processors (there are a total of 21 certified to process deer) reported a total of about 350 deer - about 15,000 pounds of venison. Wilkens said at some locations, no cost is incurred by the hunter. In other instances, hunters must pay a portion of the cost of processing.
“If there’s a statewide program, I expect there will be more butchers (who participate),†she said.
Wilkens said she fears if funding for a venison donation program comes from the state general fund, there might come a time when the money is not made available, because of competing interests.
“I think, in the long run (a venison donation program) will benefit all of our (deer-hunting) organizations,†she said. “And the public image of deer hunters will rise.â€
Cornicelli said when and if a method of funding is established by the Legislature, setting up the program wouldn’t be a problem.
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I think this is a bunch of BULL!!
Somebody is trying to spoon feed us the "feel good" "do good" bologna.
I find it hard to believe that hunters are all for more expensive Lic. cost in the name of feeding some needy, and some NOT! so needy
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Topic: Venison Donation Program (Read 3950 times)
