Volunteers Needed: Help NDA Measure Nutrition Levels of Wild Whitetail Venison

In North America, the number of people who hunt and purchase hunting licenses has been declining over the past few decades. Yet, long-term survey data shows that public approval of hunting for meat (81%) and locally sourced food (80%) remains very high. However, there is no publicly accessible nutrition content data for wild white-tailed deer meat in the USDA’s national nutrient database, FoodData Central, which is used for standard reference for human nutrition. NDA is helping to change that. 

The National Deer Association (NDA), along with Cornell University and USDA’s Human Nutrition Research Center, will collaborate on a project to collect white-tailed deer samples, use laboratory protocols to analyze the meat for nutrient content, and publish this nutrition information for consumers. We are working with NDA staff and members to provide meat samples from 12 deer. These frozen samples will be shipped to the lab in January 2026. If you’d like to help us with this exciting project by providing venison samples , here’s how.

What The Lab Needs

• The USDA lab needs samples from three white-tailed deer from each of the four Association of Fish and Wildlife Agency regions (Midwest, Northeast, Southeast and West).
• A sample consists of five pounds of edible meat from the front (neck and shoulder) and five pounds of edible meat from the rear quarters.  The meat should be deboned and only the outer fat cap removed.  It can be in large and/or small chunks.  It will be further trimmed and processed into ground meat at the USDA nutrition research lab.
• Samples must come from deer harvested with archery equipment or non-lead ammunition to avoid contaminating the meat.
• Deer must be field dressed with a stainless-steel knife as carbon steel may contaminate samples with iron (most hunting knives are stainless steel, but please check your specific knife to make sure).
• Samples must be taken with stainless steel knives..
• Samples must be taken with plastic (unpowdered) gloves or clean hands.
• Samples must be vacuum sealed and shipped to the USDA lab (we will cover the shipping cost).

Procedure for Participants

1. White-tailed deer should be immediately field dressed and the meat cooled as soon as possible.
2. Record required information on this datasheet (PDF). This datasheet includes details like date of harvest, sex of the deer, location, and general conditions. Print a copy to include with the deer meat samples and e-mail a completed copy to Kip Adams and Moira Tidball.
3. Photograph the deer’s jawbone for aging.  See How to Photograph a Deer Jawbone for Aging, and send photos to Kip Adams for aging.
4. Hang, skin, and remove feet of the deer within 48 hours in a cooler (less than 45 degrees Fahrenheit).
5. Remove five pounds of meat from the front quarter, including neck and shoulder meat, being careful not to nick any bones with your knife. Choose clean muscle meat that would typically be ground or used as steak or roast meat. Exclude meat that has been damaged, bloody, and possibly contains bone fragments from the impact wound. Only remove the outer fat cap, if applicable, and do not trim fat. Meat should be in boneless chunks. Package the meat into a clean plastic bag and vacuum seal the meat. This should be a 5lb. bag of meat. Using a permanent marker, label the bag with the state abbreviation for where it was hunted and “front quarter” being sure to write on the plastic on an end that is not in contact with the meat. Place the data sheet in a separate plastic bag (Ziplock bag is fine), seal it, and attach it to the vacuum sealed meat bag with heavy duty tape. Immediately freeze the meat and keep frozen at 0°F or below until ready to ship. 
6. Remove five pounds of meat from the hind quarter, being careful not to nick any bones with your knife. Choose clean muscle meat that would typically be ground or cut into a steak or roast. Exclude meat that has been damaged, bloody, and possibly contains bone fragments from the impact wound. Only remove the outer fat cap, if applicable, and do not trim other visible fat. Meat should be in boneless chunks. Package the meat into a clean plastic bag and vacuum seal the meat. This should be a 5lb. bag of meat. Using a permanent marker, label the bag with the state abbreviation for where it was hunted and “hind quarter” being sure to write on the plastic on an end that is not in contact with the meat. Immediately freeze the meat with the other 5 lb. bag of meat and information sheet. Keep frozen at 0°F or below until ready to ship. 

Shipping Process

Frozen meat samples will be shipped in early 2026.  Detailed shipping information will be provided by Kip Adams. Be prepared to ship the meat samples in a Styrofoam cooler, placed snugly in a corrugated cardboard box with dry ice with overnight shipping on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday either using UPS or FedEx. The shipment will include a labeled 5-lb. bag of front quarter meat, a labeled 5-lb bag of hind quarter meat, and the deer information document secured in a zip-locking plastic bag. Keep receipts for reimbursement of materials and shipping costs.

Thanks for assisting us with this exciting and important research! Please contact Kip Adams with any questions.