Hunters for the Hungry Provides Opportunity to Help Those Less Fortunate in Louisiana

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 12.11.12

If you are an outdoorsman or women experiencing success during this hunting season, you have an opportunity to pass on some of that bounty to hungry families around the state. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is encouraging hunters to donate harvested game, specifically deer and hogs, to Hunters for the Hungry (HFH).

“The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries recognizes that fostering such a program for donation and economic processing of surplus game meat advances objectives of the North American model of Conservation by helping maintain a strong base of hunters for game harvesting management and facilitating effective hunter compliance with existing regulation that prohibits the wasting of edible portions of game,” said Jimmy Anthony, LDWF’s assistant secretary for the Office of Wildlife.

HFH has enlisted the support of game processors around the state who will accept and process your game at no cost to you or the families who will benefit. You as a donor only need to bring in your harvested deer or hog to a participating processor, field-dressed in advance, and they handle the rest. You can elect to keep the backstrap and tenderloin, and donate the rest of the edible meat. There is no cost to you even if you select this option.

“We are excited and proud of the generous support LDWF is providing this very worthy program,” said Richard Campbell, head of the statewide HFH network. “With their cooperation, we hope to cover the entire state, thereby sharing the bounty of our natural resources with those less fortunate.”

For a complete list of participating processors, go to www.hunters4hungrylouisiana.org.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.