The mission of South Dakota Sportsmen Against Hunger is to encourage and facilitate donation of wild game meat to needy people in South Dakota.
What types of animals can I donate?
You can donate any type of animal you choose, but we only pay toward the processing of antlerless deer and doe/fawn antelope. You are also welcome to donate buck deer, buck antelope, elk, turkeys, pheasants and anything else you harvest, and we encourage and appreciate these donations. However, for these animals, you will have to pay the processing fees.
How many antlerless deer and kid/doe antelope will SDSAH pay to process?
There is no limit to the number of antlerless deer and doe/fawn antelope a hunter may donate and use a processing certificate to pay toward processing costs. If you're a hunter with deer or antelope to donate, simply drop off your deer or antelope at one of the many participating
processors, or call 800-456-2758 and tell us where you are, and we'll point you in the direction of the nearest participating processor. Again, you are welcome to donate as many antlerless deer and doe/fawn antelope (and any other animals) as you like, but SDSAH only pays toward processing fees for antlerless deer and doe/fawn antelope.
Is the processing free?
In most cases, yes. Here's how it works: a majority of our participating processors charge $50 to process a donated antlerless deer and $40 for a doe/fawn antelope, and that fee is covered by a processing certificate from SDSAH. Processors have these certificates at their place of business. However, a number of processors do charge more than the $50/deer or $40/antelope that SDSAH reimburses. In these cases, the hunter is responsible for the remainder of the processing fees. For information on processors and how much each charges, please see our list of participating
processors.
Who gets the meat that I donate?
The meat you donate goes through many different channels to reach needy people across the state. By coordinating through Feeding South Dakota, we have over 500 locations in South Dakota which may receive donated meat for distribution. The path the donated meat takes is that once the donated animal is delivered to a processor the meat is processed into burger and frozen. Through prior arrangements the frozen donated meat is then delivered to a local or nearby public food pantry. Lastly, the food pantry rations the donated meat to needy families who qualify for food assistance.