A national map of deer processors, including those that accept venison donations, is now available on the website of the National Deer Association. The map is part of NDA’s effort to help deer hunters maintain adequate national deer harvests, especially of antlerless deer, while meeting the needs of food-insecure families through venison sharing.
At a time when the national doe harvest is declining and deer populations climbing in most areas, the number of deer processors is also shrinking in some areas. The new map could help processors stay in business by connecting them with more local deer hunters.
“One of the more common reasons hunters give for not filling more antlerless tags is they don’t need another deer and they don’t have a place to donate one,” said NDA CEO Nick Pinizzotto. “The national venison processor map is one way we can help by making it easier for hunters to find resources for extra venison. Furthermore, we know that about one in seven households are food insecure in the United States, and we see this is a mechanism to assist with getting sought-after protein to people who need it.”
In the 2023-24 season, deer hunters harvested 3% more antlered bucks than antlerless deer, the largest gap since 1999 (see NDA’s 2025 Deer Harvest Report for more information). Many states allow hunters to purchase multiple doe tags to help manage thriving deer populations, but some hunters may not use the tags because they do not know about a nearby processor. Others might use more tags if they had access to a venison donation program.
“Where I hunt in Montana, depending on the hunt district, we can get more than one doe tag per year,” said Amber Kornak, Policy Fellow with NDA who collected the information for the new map. “Knowing about nearby venison donation programs gives me the opportunity to continue hunting while also knowing that the additional doe I harvest will be shared with those who need it most.”
In Montana, the state wildlife agency partners with the Montana Food Bank Network in the Hunters Against Hunter Program. Like similar programs in others states, this program works with deer processors to cover the processing fee for donated meat, and any legally harvested big game animal can be donated. Other programs around the United States include Hunters for the Hungry, Share the Harvest, and Sportsmen Against Hunger. These programs are vital to providing venison to local communities that are in need as well as supporting sound wildlife management.
NDA’s map is designed to help hunters easily locate a nearby venison processor. Processors are marked with either an orange or green circle. Both represent processors that handle venison. However, green circles indicate processors that accept donated deer and will coordinate the donation with a local food bank or venison donation program. Hunters can either zoom in on a state or enter a zip code in the search bar
Clicking any circle reveals the processor’s contact information. Because some businesses may close or change their services since the most recent update, NDA recommends calling a processor in advance to confirm services before bringing in a deer.
NDA will work to update the map regularly. If you are a processor who would like to be listed on the map, or if you know a processor that should be on the map, use the links provided below the map to submit the information.