A34-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 14, 1998
ELIZABETHTOWN (Lancaster
Co.) Quite a few
Pennsylvania residents are look
ing forward to deer hunting sea
son - but not for the reasons one
might expect.
The people do not plan to join
in the hunt, but they look for
ward to sharing some of the
bounty of deer season.
These individuals, in the
past, have eaten venison donat
ed through the “Hunters
Sharing the Harvest” and look
forward to again sharing the
meat harvested by generous
hunters.
The “Hunters Sharing the
Harvest” (HSH) program, which
channels donated venison to
local food banks and soup
kitchens, has been a hit with
deer hunters and hungry
Pennsylvanians alike.
Last year, more than 200,000
Pennsylvanians enjoyed meals
from venison donated by local
hunters
Now entering the eighth year
of the project, hunters across the
state are expected to donate
upwards of 80,000 pounds of
venison
HSH Coordinator Ken
Brandt said, “With 7 million
pounds of venison harvested in
the state each year, the goal is
within reach.”
Licensing Agents,
Processors Help
In an all-out effort to boost
donations, license issuing
agents have been invited to help
HSH by making hunters aware
of the program and to encourage
them to give a portion of deer
meat to help feed their hungry
neighbors
Participating agents will dis
play posters and hand out fliers
which give hunters information
about getting their venison to a
food bank in their area
Licensing agents will also be
asked to get local conservation
groups and hunting clubs
involved in giving extra deer
meat to the needy.
Penn State Researchers Look To Make Livestock Better
UNIVERSITY PARK (Centre
Co ) - Want to make sure that
your livestock weather a trip
with less wight loss? Make sure
they have plenty of "Gatorade,"
according to researchers in Penn
State's College of Agricultural
Sciences.
Lowell Wilson, professor of
animal science, teamed with
project assistant Darron Smith
to combat the significant weight
loss that occurs in calves, pigs
and lambs when they are trans
ported from farm to livestock
auction to the farm of the new
owners,
"All animals will lose weight
when transported-that's known
as shrinkage, " Smith said.
"Weight loss can approach 10
percent in transported animals,
due to numerous environmental
and physiological factors We
want to minimize this shrink
age, which results from the
stress of being handled and
transported."
Smith found that providing
livestock with electrolyte-restor
ing liquids (similar to sports
drinks for humans) before and
during transportation can
reduce shrinkage
"Offering these liquids appar
ently increases the amount of
fluid the animals consume while
Hunters Sharing Harvest Program Helps Hungry
Pennsvlvania meat proces
sors and butchers have been
contacted and will again be
asked to participate in the vol
untary sharing program. They
play an important part in the
donation project, as they butch
er carcasses under sanitary con
ditions and provide cold storage
until the meat is moved to the
food bank.
Coordinators Needed
Two area coordinators have
volunteered to organize hunters’
donations with food banks and
soup kitchens in western
Pennsylvania.
Dr. Bill Choby, who partici
pated in HSH in past years,
said, “In an area like ours where
unemployment is high, the veni
son program really makes a dif
ference for people living on the
edge. They appreciate it.”
Dr. Choby can be ''ontacted at
1905 Bates Drive, Johnstown,
PA 15905 (Cambria County)
Telephone: 814-255-7779
Steve Loder will be the area
coordinator for Allegheny
County. He can be contacted at
P.O. Box 1615, Cranberry
Township, PA 16066. His tele
phone number is 724-779-8320.
To enhance everyone’s enjoy
ment of venison, Steve and his
wife Gail have written a cook
book Quality Venison:
Homemade Recipes &
Homespun Deer Tales. Though
the Loders have over 150 recipes
for preparing venison, a portion
of their deer meat goes to the
hunters’ sharing project. Loders
can be contacted directly to
obtain copies of the cookbook or
for information about HSH.
More area coordinators are
needed, particularly in north
ern, central and eastern areas of
the state. ,
Volunteer coordinators will
be asked to contact their local
meat processors, talk to food
banks about receiving and dis
tributing the venison, and to
encourage area hunting clubs to
participate in the “Hunters
they're waiting for sale at the
auction, or even before they're
loaded on the truck at their orig
inal farm," Smith said. "This
may be because the animal has
a nutritional requirement for
some of the elements contained
m the electrolyte mixture, or it
may be because the mixture is
flavored. But increased liquid
consumption tends to cut down
on stress and wight loss."
For the experiment, scien
tists transported the animals 50
miles in the morning, kept them
for four hours in unfamiliar
pens, then transported them
another 50 miles. All animals
were weighed immediately
before and after their trips, and
again 24 and 48 hours later.
Other data were collected,
including feed and liquid con
sumed, body temperature, heart
rate and respiration.
Wilson and Smith also video
taped the animals during trans
port, tracking such behaviors as
loss of balance, aggression and
position changes. Researchers
also kept track of eating, drink
ing and other behavior during
the four-hour holding period.
The animals were divided
into three groups: one group
wasn't transported at all, a sec
ond was transported with access
The Hunters Sharing the Harvest program is in its eighth years as an organization
designed to funnel venison donations from successful hunters of Pennsylvania
whitetaii into food kitchens across the state. The prog ram is sponsored by Pennsylva
nians for the Responsible Use of Animals, an advocacy group that promotes the
humane and unwastefiil use of animals. The program also receives support from sev
eral state agencies, including the Department of Agriculture and the state Game Com
mission. From the left, state Secretary of Agriculture Samuel E. Hayes Jr. stands with
Kenneth Brandt, HSH coordinator, at the organization’s booth in the state Capitol.
Sharing the Harvest.”
Interested persons - individ
uals, clubs or informal groups -
can contact coordinator Ken
Brandt, 3317 Turnpike Road,
Elizabethtown, PA 17022.
Telephone: 717-367-5223. FAX:
717-367-4316. Ken can also be
reached by e-mail: deer
shring@aol.com.
Sponsors
The innovative HSH venison
sharing project was initiated in
1991 by Pennsylvanians for the
Responsible Use of Animals
(PRUA), The program operates
in cooperation with the Pa.
Game Commission and the Pa.
Department of Agriculture along
with the Pa. Deer Association,
Pa. Federation of Sportsmen’s
Clubs and the Pennsylvania
chapters of the Safari Clubs
International.
to water and a third was trans
ported with access to a standard
electrolyte-enhanced liquid
drink. While the water-fed ani
mals spent more time lying or
standing in the pen, the elec
trolyte-fed animals showed
increased frequency of eating
and drinking. And, while all ani
mals lost weight during trans
port, electrolyte-fed animals
tended to lose less weight than
water-fed animals.
Pitts Receives Friend Of Farm
WASHINGTON, DC. - U.S.
Congressman Joseph R. Pitts
recently received the “Friend of
Farm Bureau” Award, pi asented
by the American Farm Bureau
to Members of Congress who
have been nominated by their
state Farm Bureau and
approved to the American Farm
Bureau Federation Board of
Directors for their dedication to
policies which benefit regional
farmers.
Congressman Pitts was pre
sented the award at the farm of
Duane and Marilyn Hershey,
Cochranville.
As a representative of the
Pennsylvania Farm Bureau and
During its first year, the suc
cess of HSH attracted the atten
tion of United States Tobacco
Company, which has supported
the program since that time.
PRUA is a coalition of
Pennsylvania associations and
individuals representing agri
culture, biomedicine, entertain
ment, sports, and hunting
groups. The umbrella organiza
tion encourages humane treat
ment of animals used for food,
clothing and biomedical
research, sport and entertain
ment.
At the same time, PRUA
strongly supports the right to
use animals in a responsible
way.
Gettysburg Hunt On Hold
Due to a dispute now in the
courts, the National Park
Service has temporarily shelved
"We thing that an increase in
liquids and electrolyte consump
tion may promote feed consump
tion during stressful events like
handling and transporting to
auctions," Wilson said.
"Electrolyte-fed animals didn't
demonstrate the fasting and
binge-eating seen in water-fed
animals, so they didn't have the
large weight losses and subse
quent large feed intakes that
the American Farm Bureau
Federation, Duane Hershey pre
sented the award to
Congressman Pitts. Hershey
said, “Farm Bureau recognizes
those members of Congress who
have demonstrated a high level
of support for key issues of
importance to Farm Bureau. Joe
Pitts has proven to be a great
asset to Pennsylvania agricul
ture through his dedicated ser
vice in Congress,”
Hershey continued,
“Congressman Pitts’ support for
key Farm Bureau issues
includes fiscal responsibility
through a balanced budget along
with cuts in the capital gains
tax, 100 percent health insur-
this year’s project to continue
thinning the burgeoning deer
population on 8,000 acres of
national park land at
Gettysburg.
When the herd reduction pro
gram resumes, “Hunters
Sharing the Harvest” will con
tinue its role in helping Park
Service with distribution of
venison.
Plang are ready to solicit
funds soon as the issue is
resolved in the courts. Cash con
tributions will enable HSH and
the Park Service to have the
venison processed and donated
to food banks and soup kitchens.
A Park Service spokesman
said, “One of the most important
aspects of the reduction of deer
on parkland is the ability to uti
lize the meat.”
Travelers
water-fed animals did. This
results in animals that maintain
a more constant weight through
the transportation process."
The monogastric animals
(pigs) showed the greatest bene
fit from the electrolytes, losing
even less weight than the rumi
nants (lambs and calves) after
transportation. Wilson says the
benefits were especially evident
in hot weather.
Bureau Award
ance deductions for the self
employed, higher exemptions
from estate taxes, and tax
deferred savings accounts for
farmers FARRM Accounts.”
In receipt of the “Friend of
Farm Bureau” Award,
Congressman Pitts said, “In the
16th Congressional District of
Pennsylvania, we have some of
the most coveted farmland m
the country. I am dedicated to
continued service of the hard
working farmers, who, for gener
ations, have made this region
prosperous. I am honored to
receive this award and pledge to
continue my work on behalf of
our farmers.”