(Lewis) The shotgun deer season is fast approaching, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources reminds hunters of a couple of programs that handle extra deer meat.
Bryan Hayes from the Iowa Department of Natural Resource Office in Lewis says the Iowa Deer Exchange is one of those programs. The DNR launched the program one year ago and saw 650 people across the state either provide or accept deer meat through this new program. “The Iowa Deer Exchange program puts those two together,” said Hayes.
The other program is the long-standing Help Us Stop Hunger or HUSH. This partnership between the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the Food Bank of Iowa, and participating meat lockers.“This is another outlet for deer that have been harvested, maybe that extra doe, hunters are looking to donate,” Hayes said.
Dahl’s Custom Meat Locker in Bagley in Guthrie County and Zeb’s Smokehouse in Bedford participate in the HUSH program. Hunters who want to donate deer are asked to call these two lockers ahead of time to arrange to drop them off.
The phone number for Dahl’s Custom Meat Locker in Bagley is 641-427-5713. The phone number for Zeb’s Smokehouse in Bedford is 712-523-2526.
“This is another outlet for deer that have been harvested, maybe that extra doe, hunters are looking to donate,”
