Deer in velvet. Photo by Jennifer Bearden

When hunting, food safety begins in the field. The goal is to have safe meat for you and your family to eat. Here are a few ways to keep your food safe:

1. Shot placement – that’s right. Food safety begins with an accurate shot. Your goal should be to prevent the contents of the digestive tract from touching the meat. A gut shot can quickly ruin meat and make cleaning the animal harder.
2. The quicker you get the meat chilled the better. Improper temperature is meat’s number one enemy. The recommended storage temperature to prevent bacterial growth is 35-40°F.
3. Handle the knife with one hand and the carcass with the other. The hide can harbor dirt and pathogens so care should be taken to prevent contamination of the meat.
4. Have vinegar water and chlorine water on hand. Vinegar water (50/50) can be sprayed on areas where hair or hide touch the meat. Rinse hands and tools periodically in a bucket of sanitizing solution of 1 tbsp of chlorine per gallon of water.
5. Think food safety through the whole process. Prevent cross contamination by keeping anything from contacting the meat unless it has been sterilized. Keep the digestive tract intact and prevent the contents of it from contacting the meat. Chill the meat as quickly as possible. When further processing, continue to use sterile surfaces and tools.

For more information on wild game processing safety, you can attend our upcoming Wild About Deer: Game Processing Program on November 14 from 10am to 2pm. We will teach processing safety from field to table. A home-cooked venison meal will be provided. The cost is $ 20. Please pre-register by calling 850-689-5850.

Wild about Deer Flyer

Author: Jennifer Bearden – bearden@ufl.edu

Agriculture Agent Okaloosa County

Panhandle Outdoors

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