KIRKSVILLE, MO. -- Firearms deer season begins Saturday in Missouri and hunters will try to get their trophy buck or doe this first weekend.

Hunters can help feed the hungry through a program called Share the Harvest.  Share the Harvest allows hunters to donate their full or partial deer for use at their local food pantry.

But it takes lots of help from the community to make the program a success.

“We've been able to find some local partners this year to help supplement.  Dennis Miles over in Milan from Sharkey's Trucking has donated, Sharkey's Trucking has donated a 54 foot tractor trailer for us to be able to utilize this year as a depository and in doing so we had to find a place to put it so Ken Read up at Goody's parking lot and his associates had said 'oh yes bring that in here!'” said Missouri Department of Conservation Agent Marsha Jones.

Jones says not only are you helping your community, but you're also helping control the deer population.   

Hunters are required to field dress their deer and check it in through the department of conservation's tele-check system. You can drop off your deer with a $10 donation toward the processing costs.

“The program is a huge success.  It's been in progress for 17 years.  And in that, last year we had close to 5000 whole deer donated by hunters, 1.7 million pounds of burger ground last year, that made 1.9 million 1/4lb burgers, they figured that out.  I mean great statistics!” said Jones.

Jones says the Conservation Federation of Missouri has partnered with Shelter Insurance to make this possible and they couldn't provide this service without help from the meat processors.  The local chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation the Ridge Runners is also assisting with fuel costs.

You can drop off your deer to Goody’s Saturday and Sunday beginning at 10:00 a.m. until 8 or 9 p.m.  Truman’s Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity will be on site to assist with the donations.

Here is a list of other locations: Buck Ridge in the Newburg area.
Special D Meats in Macon
Terry Morgan in Green Top
Robert Aldridge in Queen City
Partial donations only to Nunan Locker in Edina off of CR 115