In an ongoing effort to help Pennsylvania-based agencies address food insecurity in the Commonwealth, Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation recently donated $5,000 to Hunters Sharing the Harvest (HSH). The funds will be used to cover butchering costs of approximately 100 deer harvested by hunters this year. In northeast Pennsylvania, HSH is administered by the Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP) and the Weinberg Northeast Regional Food Bank, with whom Cabot has a long and productive relationship.
According to their website, HSH has distributed more than 1.5 million pounds of donated venison through food pantries and community assistance centers since 1991. Last year, participating butchers processed more than 115,000 pounds of deer meat, which was a record. So far, for the 2020 season, deer donations continue to remain strong, according to HSH executive director John Plowman.
Plowman attributes the increase to a number of factors, including corporate donations and a greater awareness of the program and its effectiveness. When a hunter brings a field-dressed deer into the butcher shop, the accountability begins when he or she fills out a donation form, copies of which go to the hunter, the butcher and HSH. “The hunters have to have confidence that the deer that they worked hard to get is going to go where they wants it to go,” Plowman explained.
This year, HSH has partnered with the Feeding PA and Hunger Free PA food banks to identify and access additional food assistance non-profits to help deliver the meat to those who need it the most. They are expecting a 50 percent increase in demand due to the pandemic. While donations increase, so too do the costs of processing, transportation and refrigeration.
“We’re working on strategies to speed up distribution…eliminate previous ‘middle man’ handling costs and see that our product gets to dinner tables faster,” said Plowman. Food bank operators are expecting a long-term economic recovery from COVID-19 related slowdowns. With that in mind, Plowman added, “Our deer meat has never had more value to help people fighting hunger.”
In recent years, energy companies like Cabot, Williams, and Mountain Energy Services have become bigger players in HSH operations. “Cabot’s corporate involvement changed our dual roles with this program for the better,” Plowman stated, “by maintaining the annual corporate support and matching it with their employee incentives to support HSH personally.”
“We here at Cabot are happy to be among a diverse mix of supporters in the Endless Mountains, including sportsman’s clubs and community organizations like the Towanda Gun Club and the Kenneth & Caroline Taylor Family Foundation and other corporations like Walmart VAP Foundation, Deer Park Lumber and Procter & Gamble,” said Bill desRosoiers, Cabot’s manager of external affairs.
For more information about the program and to find out how you can help, interested readers can log on to www.sharedeer.org.