Hunters Against Hunger program donates to food pantries

A partnership between Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and Montana Food Bank Network allows hunters to donate a portion or all of their legally harvested big game animals to be processed free of charge. The meat is then provided directly to a local food pantry in the area. 

Since its inception in 2014, over 373,464 pounds of meat has been donated through the Hunters Against Hunter program and distributed to Montanans experiencing food insecurity through 29 local food pantry sites, including North Valley Food Bank in Whitefish.  

Meat is extremely expensive for food pantries to provide, yet a highly nutritious resource for their clients.  

Susan and Jay Wood, Co-Founders of Southwest Montana Veterans Food Pantry and Services said when people see that the food pantry has a freezer full of wild game, they light up. 

Participation by local meat processors and hunters are the keys to success for this growing program. Big game donations of deer, elk, antelope, moose and wild buffalo can only be accepted as part of the program by authorized participating meat processors set up around the state. Participating processors get reimbursed up to $3.00 per pound for finished product. 

Only legally harvested or confiscated big game animals can be donated. No roadkill can be donated.  A full list of authorized processors can be found at the Montana Food Bank Network’s website, mfbn.org/hunters-against-hunger/.  

To offset the cost of processing, hunters purchasing a Montana hunting license are given the opportunity to make a monetary donation to this program. Additional donations to the program are being accepted by Montana Food Bank Network. 

For further information on the Hunters Against Hunger program, contact MFBN’s Programs Coordinator, Cyrus Turbak at 406-215-1772.