Deer hunters donate surplus venison to help KC-area food pantries fill the need

By Matt Evans

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    KANSAS CITY, Missouri (KMBC) — Many food banks are getting a big influx thanks to Missouri hunters.

It’s been more than busy at Powell Meat Company in Clinton since firearms deer season opened Saturday morning.

“Just trying to keep up,” said Travis Powell, of the Powell Meat Company.

Statewide, hunters harvested more than 93,000 deer over the weekend. About 800 of them ended up at Powell’s.

“They’re coming in left and right,” Powell said.

With more deer coming in, that also means they’ve seen more hunters wanting to donate the meat even with sky-high inflation right now.

“But there’s a lot of folks out there that are generous, especially around these areas,” Powell said.

Powell’s is one of the largest processors in the state when it comes to the Share the Harvest program, which is sponsored by the Department of Conservation. They donated about 10,000 pounds of venison last year and expect to surpass that number this year.

“I think more people want to give back,” Powell said.

That’s good news for food banks across the area that have seen the need only grow for the last two years.

“The pandemic obviously had a big impact on people, and then inflation came right after,” said Sarah Biles, of Harvesters Community Food Network.

Meat prices are one of many things that have skyrocketed this year, so donations are a big help.

“Any protein donations we can get are definitely needed and much appreciated,” Biles said.

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