Why We Built Hunt. Donate. Feed Local.

New York is asking hunters to play a bigger role in deer management. We believe the infrastructure to support them needs to grow with that responsibility.

For generations, deer hunting in New York has been about more than filling a tag. It is tradition. It is time spent outdoors. It puts food in our freezers and connects us to the land in a way few other things can.

It is also one of New York’s most important wildlife-management tools.

For the 2026 season, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has made significant changes to deer hunting regulations with a clear objective: increase the harvest of antlerless deer in the areas of New York where deer populations need greater management.

That change is what started the conversation behind Hunt. Donate. Feed Local.

So, Why More Antlerless Deer?

When most hunters think about deer season, bucks naturally get a lot of the attention. But from a wildlife-management standpoint, antlerless harvest plays an entirely different role.

Does are the reproductive side of the herd. Managing the number of antlerless deer on the landscape directly affects future population growth.

DEC says deer populations are growing in many areas of New York and that increased antlerless harvest is necessary to keep populations healthy, in balance with available habitat, and at levels communities can support.

Too many deer on a landscape isn’t necessarily a sign of a healthier deer herd.

When deer numbers exceed what the habitat can sustainably support, increased browsing can affect forest regeneration and native vegetation. Greater competition for available food can affect the condition of the deer themselves. High deer densities can also contribute to agricultural damage, deer-vehicle collisions and other conflicts between deer and the communities sharing that landscape.

Finding the right balance benefits the deer, the habitat and the people living alongside them.

And hunters are a critical part of achieving it.

What’s Changing for New York Hunters in 2026?

DEC’s new regulations don’t simply tell hunters that more antlerless deer need to be harvested. They create additional opportunities and incentives to make that happen.

One of the biggest changes is the new statewide Earn-a-2nd-Buck system.

Hunters receive their first Antlered Deer Tag with their license. A hunter who then legally harvests and reports an antlerless deer using an eligible antlerless tag becomes eligible to receive a second Antlered Deer Tag.

DEC also made several other significant changes for 2026, including:

• Increasing Deer Management Permit availability in selected Wildlife Management Units;
• Allowing hunters to receive an unlimited number of transferred DMPs;
• Expanding the September antlerless season into additional WMUs; and
• Creating additional opportunities for hunters to harvest antlerless deer where population-management needs are greatest.

These aren’t arbitrary changes.

DEC’s regulatory analysis found that only about 13% of licensed hunters harvest one or more antlerless deer, and fewer than 3% harvest two or more. DEC identified increasing participation in antlerless harvest as an important opportunity for reaching deer-management objectives.

But There Is Another Side to the Equation.

This is where Into the Wild saw a gap.

We can give hunters more antlerless tags.

We can create incentives to harvest a doe.

We can expand seasons and opportunities.

But there is still a very practical question facing the person standing in the woods:

What am I going to do with another deer?

Many hunters already harvest enough venison to feed their own families. Freezer space is limited. Processing costs money. And some hunters who would gladly take another antlerless deer to help meet management goals simply don’t need another 30, 40 or 50 pounds of meat at home.

That doesn’t mean the deer shouldn’t be harvested.

And it certainly doesn’t mean that food should go to waste.

It means we need a better way to connect the two sides of the equation.

That’s the Why Behind Hunt. Donate. Feed Local.

Hunt. Donate. Feed Local. was created to build that missing infrastructure.

If New York is asking hunters to participate more actively in managing the deer herd, we want to make it easier for hunters to say yes.

Yes, I’ll take an antlerless deer.
Yes, I’ll help manage the property I hunt.
Yes, I’ll contribute to healthier deer populations and healthier forests.

And if my freezer is already full, yes, that deer can still serve a purpose.

Through Hunt. Donate. Feed Local., hunters can bring an eligible, legally harvested deer to a participating local processor.

The processor turns that deer into bulk ground venison.

From there, our community food partners can turn that locally harvested protein into nutritious meals for families throughout our region.

Harvest → Donate → Process → Feed Local.

It’s a simple concept, but the impact reaches much further.

Conservation Doesn’t End at the Harvest.

We believe responsible hunting and conservation go hand in hand.

A successful deer-management program isn’t simply about harvesting more deer. It is about understanding why that harvest is necessary and making sure the resource is respected afterward.

A harvested deer can help reduce pressure on habitat.
It can contribute to a healthier, more sustainable herd.
It can help farmers and landowners experiencing deer damage.
It can help New York meet wildlife-management objectives.

And then that same deer can become healthy, locally sourced protein for people living right here in our communities.

One deer can provide approximately 40 pounds of processed venison—an estimated 150 meals.

That’s where wildlife management becomes community impact.

Hunters Are Part of the Conservation Solution.

Hunters sometimes get left out of conversations about conservation.

They shouldn’t.

New York itself relies heavily on regulated hunting to manage white-tailed deer populations. DEC describes adequate antlerless harvest as essential to successful deer-management efforts and notes that landowners and hunters are ultimately the people carrying that management out on the landscape.

That matters.

When a hunter chooses to harvest an antlerless deer where additional harvest is needed, that decision is bigger than one tag.

It’s habitat management.
It’s herd management.
It’s conservation.

And through this program, it can also be food security.

Building the Network

Hunt. Donate. Feed Local. is starting locally because we believe that’s how a program like this should grow.

We’re building a regional network of participating venison processors, county by county, so hunters have clear and reliable places to bring donated deer.

Our processors handle the venison professionally. Our food-distribution partners—including A Single Bite and the Sullivan County Federation for the Homeless—take it from there, preparing and distributing meals through established community programs.

As Jennifer Bitetto, Real Food Logistics Manager at A Single Bite, put it:

“Access to locally donated venison gives A Single Bite another opportunity to turn a local resource into nutritious meals for our neighbors. We’re grateful to be part of a partnership that brings hunters, processors, and community organizations together to make good food available to families throughout our region.”

That’s exactly the circle we hope to build.

Local deer. Local hunters. Local processors. Local meals.

This Is Bigger Than a Venison Drive.

Hunt. Donate. Feed Local. isn’t about encouraging hunters to harvest deer simply because another tag is available.

It’s about purposeful harvest.

Understand the management needs where you hunt. Know your Wildlife Management Unit. Follow the current regulations. Harvest responsibly. Take what your family can use.

And when the opportunity exists to take an additional eligible deer that helps meet a management objective—but you don’t need that meat yourself—we want there to be another option.

Donate it.

Let that harvest keep working.

For the herd.
For the habitat.
For the hunting tradition we want future generations to inherit.
And for a family in our own community who can put that food on the table.

Hunt. Donate. Feed Local.

Responsible harvest. Healthier herds. Stronger habitats. Local food. Community impact.

Hunters should always review current New York State DEC regulations for the Wildlife Management Unit in which they hunt, including applicable seasons, tags, reporting requirements and legal implements.