Use By Date for Venison?

nehimama · #1 10/21/08, 05:25 AM

I'm amazed! I just found out yesterday from a neighbor that venison must be consumed by a certain date after processing. For example, last hunting season's take must have been eaten or consumed by August 2008. Apparently, if "outdated" venison is found in one's freezer, the owner can face a hefty fine.

I can't understand the reasoning behind such a law, and don't even know how to research such. Don't even know what entity does the search & fine.

Can anyone enlighten me? Thanks!

NeHi

Rockytopsis · #2 10/21/08, 06:19 AM

Heaven help the Venison Cop that tries to search my freezer. I think I will just start labeling mine goat.

**Cabin Fever** · #3 10/21/08, 07:11 AM

I think a certain neighbor is pulling your leg. Did he offer to "hide" some of your venison in his freezer?

4sam · #4 10/21/08, 07:28 AM

This sounds like a bunch of BS to me but then again we never have to worry about venison being in our freezer that long. Usually gets eaten up way to fast with hungry teenage boys in the house.

wy_white_wolf · #5 10/21/08, 08:16 AM

In Wyoming you are required to put the year of harvest on all packaged venision but never heard of any "use by" restrictions. I'd have to see the law in writing before I believed it. Shouldn't be hard to research the states hunting laws or ask the conservation/game and fish officer.

suzyhomemaker09 · #6 10/21/08, 08:40 AM

I see nothing from MDC about consuming by a certain date....think your neighbor was misinformed.

jross · #7 10/21/08, 08:40 AM

The only thing I know of in New Jersey is that the possession tag has to remain with the venison until it is consumed and if you give some away, the tag number must accompany the meat. If the recipent is found with venison and no tag number, they are charged with illegal possession of deer meat. It is rarely enforced, but used to nail poachers.

cantcutter · #8 10/21/08, 08:46 AM

It may fall under the bag limit/possession laws. Many states have a daily bag limit and a total possession limit. Vermont for example has a 6 grouse limit per day and an 8 in possession. So if you shoot 6 one day and had 2 in the freezer you have to eat a few before you can hunt again.

MELOC · #9 10/21/08, 10:19 AM

that is true in pennsylvania. my thinking was always that maybe that was one way they could enforce laws against poaching...like if they somehow found venison in your freezer in the middle of the summer. game wardens actually have more power than the police in a few ways. i don't think they are bound by the need to procure a search warrant if they feel they have cause to search for illegally taken game.

personally, i think they are full of themselves. if you read the laws concerning hunting in pa, you stumble across the "mandate" (i am no lawyer so i fail at the proper legal lingo) that places the state forests and such in the care of a commission headed by one person as if the land actually belonged to that person. it is sort of strange.

MELOC · #10 10/21/08, 11:42 AM

i searched high and low and cannot find reference to the time limit about possessing game in pa. i know it used to be @ 8 months.

Old Vet · #11 10/21/08, 12:37 PM

Call your local game warden office and ask them. No one can know all the laws in all the states.

sewtlm · #12 10/21/08, 01:12 PM

In MO you must eat the previous years venison by the time hunting season starts and not have more than your tag limit in storage. This can be enforced by the game warden so don't tick him off. It was originally used to limit poaching and the early 20th century mass killing of animals for resale back east. (Hide hunters)

My FIL friend and neighbor got fined $2000 this way but he shouldn't have mouthed off to the warden when he was asked about poaching.

Here where we are now I don't think we could eat our 6 tags(deer) in a year and our warden is only interested in making sure the out of state hunters are legal and don't shoot cows/horses.

fishhead · #13 10/21/08, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MELOC

game wardens actually have more power than the police in a few ways.

That's what our game wardens used to imply with their violations of our Fourth Amendment until they tried it on a lawyer. It turns out that they do NOT have more power than another LEO. I've read the statute that says that in plain language but for decades they did it and got away with it. I suspect it's the same in your state.

They must obtain a search warrant just like any other LEO to search your private holdings.

**highlands** · #14 10/21/08, 01:28 PM

Are you sure this is real? Sounds like a misunderstanding to me. Check the regulations directly. They're online.

CGUARDSMAN · #15 10/21/08, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by highlands

Are you sure this is real? Sounds like a misunderstanding to me. Check the regulations directly. They're online.

It is a seldom enforced law in MO and is true. I thought however that it had changed. I will have to look it up.

missourimelodie · #16 10/21/08, 02:38 PM

I believe that this is still in affect. It also applies to other game, including fish, though I don't think it is enforced often. More of a it's there if they want to make a deal out of it kind of thing. Someone suspected of poaching might be checked out, but the rest of us should be fine.

Elizabeth · #17 10/21/08, 02:46 PM

I can't answer your question, but it sure is interesting to learn how different the game law are from state to state. I would definitely call the game warden for clarification.

We just found 4 pounds of moose from 2004 in the bottom of a freezer. Wonder what that would get us in MO, lol?

Bret · #18 10/21/08, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elizabeth

I can't answer you question, but it sure is interesting to learn how different the game law are from state to state. I would definitely call the game warden for clarification.

We just found 4 pounds of moose from 2004 in the bottom of a freezer. Wonder what that would get us in MO, lol?

Your moose must have fallen.

If it was a game law, I'm sure it would make sense in the context. From the meat only stand point, if it passes my nose test it passes the tummy test.

snowshoehair · #19 10/21/08, 04:00 PM

I am voting with this being a game possession law for game animals that you are allowed to take one per season and have one in possession (say... moose). If you were to have two different dates, it would mean to F&G that you had two in possession (two moose... wow! Who has a freezer that big!).

In order for someone to say your wild game is expired, they would have to provide some sort of scientific proof that it is. Besides, where is there a law that says it is illegal for you to consume anything that you have in your house that is past an expiration date? The grocery store can't sell anything that is expired, but if someone wants to eat moldy cheese and follow that with a "chunk" of curdled milk... how would that be illegal? Not real bright maybe.....

stranger · #20 10/21/08, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nehimama

I'm amazed! I just found out yesterday from a neighbor that venison must be consumed by a certain date after processing. For example, last hunting season's take must have been eaten or consumed by August 2008. Apparently, if "outdated" venison is found in one's freezer, the owner can face a hefty fine.

I can't understand the reasoning behind such a law, and don't even know how to research such. Don't even know what entity does the search & fine.

Can anyone enlighten me? Thanks!

NeHi

the reason behind it is that if you have venison in your freezor when the next season starts, you must be jacking deer. even if we smack one with a car, the cops give us a permit to keep it, and we have a 30 or 60 day permit to have deer meat in the freezor, at one time all the road kill went to the county jail, but so many people were suing the state for the damage that the states deer were doing to their cars that the state decided to just give them the deer.
I wouldn't even want to get caught carring any deer meat home without a permit in some counties

here the DEC can come in a search if they want to withoput any paper work, but it's seldom done to people that aren't suspected of poaching.