What happens to most of the game you take - do you eat it yourself? Share with friends? Sell to a game dealer?

I think in common with a lot of UK hunters, 90% of my game goes to a dealer. Mine is sold in a local farmers market.

Just wondering if this commercial relationship is common throughout Europe...

90%+ of my deer go to the freezers in my garage. they get used in shoot dinners, and at home.

I've just started making batches of stews/pies and vac packing and freezing which make for some easy ready meals at home.

Some also goes into Biltong, smoked fillets and then I probably only sell 5 carcasses a year.

Hi Bog,
In Italy the ownership of the meat belongs to the hunter, when the hunt is conducted in solitary, it belongs to the team when the hunt is conducted in squad, in both cases when is done out of fenced resorts. When in fenced resorts normally the hunter pays for the trophy, if he wants the meet too he has to pay a certain amount for kg.

We would eat a fair amount of venison at home.I would have a good few friends and neighbours who enjoy venison also.
Stags and bucks in the rut go straight to the game dealer !
On my trips to the continental Europe,as a paying hunter, all game[boar] is tagged pretty much immediately and goes to the gamedealer for veterinary inspection.The animal being tagged and a blood and tissue sample being taken.
In Scandinavia,hunting with friends,the roe are butchered for the family and in Norway the moose meat is sold.The proceeds go to offsetting the cost of the hunting lease.

I put 6 deer in the freezer last season, they won't last till this season!
In the UK I always had the freezer full. I sold most of what I shot in Scotland, ate what I shot in Northern Ireland. At least in the UK I had a supply year round.

Its a mixture.

Any decent carcase goes in the freezers, regardless of species, unless I already have an over supply. Once I and rest of the family are all catered for then good high yielding carcases are sold to local outlets.

Any chest shot carcases and every buck or stag shot in the rut goes off to the game dealers.

Muntjac get used for the fund raising BBQ's, I can't see the point in using decent venison on a BBQ, or along with roe does as gifts to those who have helped out during the year. They don't over load the recipients, and are easier to deal with in a domestic environment.

I have two freezers about 380 liter full with moose(90% of the space) some roe and fallow, cloudberry,lingonberry and blueberry. The only meat i buy is pork.

I have two freezers which I try to fill and my wife tries to empty.
I put in venison, fish, rabbit, game and pigeon all in meal sized portions.
I make a few sausages and burgers in my sausage machine too and freeze down for summer barbeques.

I used to give a lot of game away to friends and neigbours but found that most weren't to keen on plucking, drawing or skinning the meat themselves.
So I've stopped giving to anyone who doesn't want to do a bit of work for their meal and can't handle the blood and guts.

The only meat that i keep is sika calfs anything else goes to the gamedealer.

I would keep a good bit for myself and would give a good bit to friends and family.

Dave its not many people who have the skills to take care of the meat who aren`t farmers or hunters.

Sadly as modern urban society becomes increasing divorced from the land this dismal state of affairs will continue.

At least some countries have education programmes designed to reconnect their urban populations back with the land and its traditions.

Sadly the UK isn't one of them. We are fast becoming a nation that believes meat comes ready wrapped in plastic film, milk comes in cardboard cartons, and tofu is the best thing since sliced bread.

It took me 10 years to understand how to process and cook venison here in New Zealand. I wish I had learned this a bit earlier.

Most hunters here hunt on foot in steep bush country & have to carry the animal or meat back to camp. They usually take the back legs & back straps & tender loins. If it is fallow or Sika, it might be the whole animal - in which case we take all 4 legs and back, neck & rib meat. The neck & rib meat along with the shanks are often sent to the butcher for making sausages. If the animal is shot close to camp or the truck - we just drop it off at the local butcher to process the whole thing.

This year I got my first Tahr - 4 nannies & they are surprisingly good eating. More like good venison than goat and I cut them into 1 inch steaks and marinated in pepper & garlic steak marinade & fried them - great eating & the kids love it!

I buy the frist 2 deer for pay the Helicopter, and the other i make meat for my and my family!