I've been at this a very long time and the term "camp meat" has been around longer than that. To me it has a negative connotation. When I started hunting years ago, I knew a friend of my father that thought he was entitled to "camp meat". His tag might read "one buck only", but he read it as one buck and camp meat (a doe). That has stuck with me, because I don't recall eating much of that "camp meat". We were eating sandwiches and Hamburger-Helper.

When I hunt Africa I usually have some of the animal I kill served to me on multiple occassions; in 2006 it was buffalo and warthog. It was great.

You can read in this forum comments along the lines of, "I'm going after eight or ten trophies.......plus I need a few bullets for camp meat. So, who's eating the eight or nine trophies, or is that meat going to be hung on the wall too.

I understand killing non-trophy game for leopard bait, but what's with the term "camp meat"?

Probably goes back to the 1800's or even earlier, before everyone had refrigiration and ice chests handy.

Probaly does not matter what continent it was on, but the general idea was that instead of carrying meat in harsh conditions, it was easier to just have one of the hunters or the campstaff to go out and pop a doe or young buck/bull for meat for the first couple of days.

Also, due to the lack of being able to keep the meat fresh, or preserve it, such as jerky or biltong, it was easier just to go out every other day or so and kill something else. JMO.

I agree with your definition for the 1800s. What is the 2008 definition?

I'm afraid today it equates to sighting in your rifle on something alive.

Meat you eat in camp.

I think its more an ego thing. An animal that you shot that does not measure up to what you or your friends think is a "trophy" animal. As far as I have seen, the trophy fees are the same for these as they are for the bruisers.

When I was hunting buffalo, the PH made a comment that the meat locker was getting a little low, and that if we did not get on something we may have to shoot a "meat impala" if we did not want to eat something frozen. I have never seen anything wasted over in Africa, although I have seen people throw out a front quarter here in the US because it was "too shot up" (Read they were too lazy to want to clean it)

cb

if there are 20-30 camp workers--water porters, fire-starters, cooks, waiters, laundry folks, sweepers, trackers, skinners, children learning, game scouts, "mechanics", etc., they will consume an enormous amount of meat. Everyhing that isn't used for bait will be eaten--and if they run out, you may have to shoot a non-trophy animal to feed them. The PH will let you know what and when.

The game department allows some non trophy animals to be shot as cam meat for the staff - I think just in case there was no trophies to be shot by the client.

So every now and then, the game scout would decide that he wants some meat to make biltong from, and asks the PH if the client would shoot an animal for them.

That is the way I understand it, and have shot quite a few animals for camp meat for them.

I never thought of it in a negative sense and I never saw the harm in calling it camp meat as that's what it is. Maybe it's "abused" somewhere but not from what I have seen and heard.

Sounds legit to me, in Africa. Thanks.

I have never been charged for a "camp meat" animial, normally an Impala or Warthog.

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The game department allows some non trophy animals to be shot as cam meat for the staff - I think just in case there was no trophies to be shot by the client.

So every now and then, the game scout would decide that he wants some meat to make biltong from, and asks the PH if the client would shoot an animal for them.

That is the way I understand it, and have shot quite a few animals for camp meat for them.

Exactly, in Zim our game scout asked me to kill a warthog for his meat rations. The PH explained that the game scouts in that area were allowed 1 non trophy animal for meat rations. I assume that was one animal per hunt.

/

In some places it still is a reasonable and accepted practice, but in the U.S. anymore it's a way some people justify what is effectively poaching.

In Africa it's not uncommon to shoot an animal for meat in camp. I did in Moz. in 2003. The PH & I had loins & the staff got the rest of my little Reedbuck doe.

I shot a springbuck for "camp meat" in Namibia...didn't bother me in the least as I knew all if was going to be used.
As we drove around the farm, we delivered meat (and I'm not sure what else) in bags to the workers who tended the cattle, sheep and goats. The PH explained that part of their pay is so many pounds of meat per person per day.
We either consumed the birds we shot or they went to the birdboys and the rest of the staff. Some days/times we used bird boys sometimes we didn't. The last day, early in the morning we shot birds, took them to one of the "sheepherders" for him and his family. The birds are bonus meat for him and his family as they didn't count towards that weeks meat.

Robert

As usua, any caper Walter gets involevd in turns into an adventure!

We were asked to shoot an impala for camp meat. I thought it was a good idea for Walter to do it, as he seems to need the practice!

I loaded the rifle for him, and managed to get him out of the truck as a herd of impala were feeding not far from us.

Me "Come on, get moving. The impala are there totally unaware of us!"

Walter "Then I do not need to hurry, do I? They are having their breakfast!"

There was quite a bit of brush, but we saw a buck standing partly in the open.

Me "There, shoot that one!"
Walter "Why that one in particular? Is it because he is not too clear?"

Me "Just shoot the part that is clear, and hurry up he is going to walk off in a minute!"

The impala started moving, Walter fired. I could see the bullet hit below the impala.

Me "You missed! Why can't you ever shoot properly?"

Walter " Shut up and come help me find my impala"
Me "Your impala is gone. Let us try to see. They might not have gone very far.

Sure enough, we found them again close by.

The same performance was repeated 3 times. His lordship missing 4 impals in sucession!

Walter "Here, take your useless rifle! The scope is off. You need to adjust it before a buffalo stamps on you"

I tok the rifle from him, and ran after the impala and managed to shoot one.

On the way to the truck, Walter asked "How many are we supposed to shoot for them?"

Me "Just one"

Walter, with a big smile on his face, "I am going to annoy the game scout. Don't say anything"

He turned to the trackers, who were getting ready to carry the impala back to the truck.

"You two stay here. We will bring the truck back"

One of them said "We can carry it. It is not very big"

Walter "Philip, if you want to see your wife again you better listen to me and stay here! I am going to make the game scout mad"

The game scout was standing next to the truck, also smiling. walter walks up to him, with his hands stretched.

Walter "You are my BEST friend! saeed and Roy only allow me to shoot one impala. You, my friend, let me shoot FOUR!"

The smile disapeeared from the game scouts face. His jaw just dropped, and his mouth stayed open!

Me "Fine, now you can ask your FRIEND to let you shoot zebras for him as cam meat, so you won't have to take them off our quota"

The game scout started mumbling something which I could not understand.

Me "Come on, let us go pick our 4 impalas. We want to go find some buffalo!"

The game scout lost most of his color by the time we got to the trackers.