The meat that had been donated to the Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission could have fed more than 3,000 people. Instead, it was tossed in trash bins by officials from the Department of Health and Hospitals who say that state law prohibits the serving of venison in homeless shelters.
Not only did the officials toss the meat, they doused it with Clorox to make sure it couldn’t be eaten by animals or, presumably, people.
“Deer meat is not permitted to be served in a shelter, restaurant or any other public eating establishment in Louisiana,” an official told Fox News in an email. “While we applaud the good intentions of the hunters who donated this meat, we must protect the people who eat at the Rescue Mission, and we cannot allow a potentially serious health threat to endanger the public.”
Richard Campbell, co-founder of Hunters for the Hungry, a charitable group that donates wild game to shelters, said hunters across the state and in Mississippi are outraged about the statement and the waste.
The state’s health Gestapo got involved after someone at the shelter complained about being fed deer meat, a staple in many countries across the globe and considered by most people to be a treat or a delicacy.
I don’t know what’s wrong with Louisiana, but in California, turning down venison would be like turning down a lobster tail with drawn butter — it’s something that sane people who aren't vegetarians just wouldn't do.
The director of the mission said they've been serving venison for years. The shelter, by the way, doesn't take any government money. It’s completely self-sufficient thanks to its donors.
“This was really good meat,” said the Rev. Henry Martin. “It’s high in protein and low in cholesterol. It’s very healthy. … You would think we would have due process. But they meant to destroy the meat – that’s for sure.”
Louisiana hunters participating in the state’s deer management programs are allowed to keep as much meat as they can handle. Martin’s mission asks hunters to donate the rest. The donated meat is processed at a local meat plant.
State Rep. Jeff Thompson called the destruction of the meat “insulting,” and he’s right.
