hhh deer
Through support from our friends at the NJ Farm Bureau working with the NJ Dept. of Agriculture, we have been awarded a grant which will allow us to waive the hunters portion of the processing fees for hunter donated deer having a field dressed weight of 50 lbs or more for the entire 2022/2023 hunting season. The total fees butchers receive have been increased to $100/ deer.The fee to hunters for deer having a field dressed weight under 50 lbs will be at $50.00.

HHH originally started to assist hunters who could harvest more deer than they could use personally. Over the years our mission has been expanded. 1) we continue to pay butchering costs for hunters who are able to take more deer than they can use 2) we support various municipal/private property owners that pay for the butchering process directly while they attempt to reduce deer populations on their property and 3) we now are setting aside a portion of the Dept of Agriculture grant(s) to support and pay for butchering of deer taken by farmers and their agents during depredation hunts.

All of our efforts ultimately help the food bank system in New Jersey and those families less fortunate.

How to Donate your Legally Harvested Deer

After tagging your deer, and calling for your transportation number, take your deer to one of the participating butchers listed on our website, and in the hunter’s digest. The food bank is not allowed to distribute the meat unless the deer is processed at a butcher that has been inspected by the State Health Dept. All participating butchers have passed this inspection.

Fill out the form at the butcher shop (name, address, license number, transportation number, etc).

If the dressed weight of your deer is more than 50 lbs, you pay at least the first $10 of the processing fee, and HHH pays the balance. If the dressed weight of your deer is less than 50 lbs, then you pay at least the first $25 of the processing fee. HHH is not a state funded program. All funding comes from donations, and fundraisers. Since there have been years when we had to close the program down during the hunting season due to lack of funding, we need to ask the hunter to share in the processing fee.

The butcher will then process your deer, and the food bank will pick your processed deer up at the butcher, and distribute the meat to various food pantries, emergency shelters, churches, etc. Your deer, and your willingness to share in the cost of the processing fees will then help feed hungry families in New Jersey.

Thank you for being a vital part of the Hunters Helping the Hungry program!