Joe Manchin III, Governor

Frank Jezioro, Director

News Release : September 22, 2005

Hoy Murphy , Public Information Officer (304) 558-3380 hoymurphy@wvdnr.gov

Contact: Curtis Taylor , Wildlife Resources Section Chief (304) 558-2771 wildlife@wvdnr.gov

Try Venison for a Low Fat Alternative to Beef

  As hunters take to the field for West Virginia's annual deer hunting seasons, their freezers will soon be filled with an ample amount of deer meat (venison) harvested from around the Mountain State. State wildlife biologists expect this year's harvest to exceed 175,000 deer.

  “Many West Virginia families supplement their meat supply with nutritious venison harvested in West Virginia ,” according to Curtis I. Taylor, Chief of the Wildlife Resources Section of the Division of Natural Resources. “Venison is a healthy low fat alternative to beef. It has fewer calories and nearly five times less fat then an equivalent serving of beef.”

  Hunters are not the only West Virginians to benefit from deer harvested in the state. The Hunters Helping the Hungry Program (HHH), sponsored by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Mountaineer Food Bank and Huntington Area Food Bank, processes and delivers hunter-donated venison to needy families across the state. Since its inception in 1992, hunters have donated more than one-half million pounds of venison, providing more than 600,000 meals for needy West Virginians . This year will mark the 13 th consecutive year for this successful program.

  For more information about the HHH program or deer hunting seasons and regulations, consult the 2005-2006 West Virginia Hunting and Trapping Regulations brochure available at all Division of Natural Resources offices and license agents or visit the DNR Web site at www.wvdnr.gov .

**DNR**