USDA sponsors many great programs like the “Feds Feed Families” employee food drive, gleaning fruit from research farms, and harvesting vegetables from the People’s Gardens to provide food for the hungry. The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Wildlife Services (WS) program has taken a unique approach to feeding the hungry. Last year in the Eastern Region, WS donated more than 74 tons of venison to food banks and charitable organizations. WS employees are proud to be able to provide for those in need by utilizing these animals, which are lethally removed at the request of local individuals and agencies.
WS provides assistance when wildlife causes problems. In this case, the venison was collected from white-tailed deer that were taken for safety and protection purposes. The population of deer has grown from one-quarter million nationally in 1900 to more than 17 million today. Some locations request WS to remove deer to prevent wildlife strikes at airports and vehicle-deer collisions. When herds become locally over-abundant, populations also can mean damage to threatened and endangered plant species and to public and private property.