Market forces

The UK Government currently states that the deer population is believed to be around 2 million and at its highest level in 1,000 years. Although they say “believed” to be, all deer managers know that the true figure could be quite different. Previously the range given by the Government was between 750,000 and 1.6 million, which is a huge spread.

Is it important for us to know the headline-grabbing number of the UK deer population? That depends on how you intend to use that number. Putting a nice round figure in the millions certainly grabs a lot of headlines, and the papers that quote this figure are all seemingly in favour of population reduction, often highlighting the impact that deer have. 

If the topic were foxes – of which we have over 350,000 in the UK – it would not be as interesting. Nor would the public support any sort of cull, as their interaction with foxes is limited to the positives of seeing them alive in and around cities. The badger population stands at around half a million, but again any articles discussing their impact on the countryside are against any sort of control.

A route to market 

In contrast, deer have a tasty afterlife, so the positives of culling in our woodlands, coupled with putting a healthy super-meat on people’s tables, means that the actual act of killing a deer is often brushed over and renamed ‘culling’.

So surely this is all good news for UK stalkers – more deer ranging further, offering lots of opportunities to find new land to shoot on. Yet if you asked a group of deer managers what their main concerns were with managing the UK deer population, the majority would mention the difficulties in moving the carcasses to market. 

Price aside, this autumn has already seen game dealers restrict what can be brought through their doors. Major taxpayers’ money has gone into some game dealers, yet even they cannot find enough of a market for the meat. At the same time we import a lot of venison from overseas . Surely the public would prefer to eat UK-grown wild venison than farmed deer from the other side of the world? I have certainly found two customers who came to me once they realised that their highland venison was not actually from the Highlands, but from New Zealand.

To have a positive impact on reducing deer numbers, especially for the larger species such as red and fallow, a lot of time must go into visiting the ground as well as having the infrastructure to move them once they are on the ground. When the opportunities arise, taking multiple deer from a herd is essential as you never know when you will get that chance again. If you do not have the assurance that you can get rid of the carcasses you are taking from the ground, it is not in any of us just to leave them to rot.

Paying the price

Price is certainly a key driver in reducing numbers. When the price is good, more stalkers will get out. You only have to read through social media channels to see stalkers chastising game dealers for the price they are paying, which at the moment is at an all-time low. There are other platforms where people who shoot can advertise game. When looking through these posts, often the seller of the deer carcass is offering it at the same price, if not lower, than game dealers. Ultimately this is going to further reduce what game dealers will pay. After all they are middlemen, whereas when we sell to the final consumer the cost must be higher.

What is the answer? 

Many have found it in registering with the local council as a food business operator and offering small quantities of in-fur or processed venison directly to the local consumer. It does take effort and paperwork at the start, but the satisfaction comes from driving your own market for venison, where you are ultimately responsible for what passes through your premises. You can dictate the price based on what the market will pay. The price you charge for a carcass in the skin should be well above what game dealers are paying, as you are now the retailer and are dealing with the final consumer.

Not all game must be processed; I have a range of final consumers who come for in-fur carcasses. I found the process of setting myself up quite simple, with minimal outlay required. The local authority was very helpful in looking through my documentation and very supportive during the process, despite never having visited another stalker in the county.

Another outlet is the pet food industry. Many pet owners are turning away from traditional dry food and opting for raw feeding. They order it frozen, direct to their door, as a complete food, but for those with a little time, a venison carcass can offer so much more, being cheaper and with far less fat than many of our farmed meats. Throwing in a small percentage of offal into a dog’s diet is also very good for them. In parts of the USA and Canada you can drop off your deer carcasses at a processing centre, which will cut it up to feed the homeless or supply it to food banks.

I was quite shocked on a trip to Scotland a few years ago to see all the deer fencing, deer gates and cattle grids across the country. It was a few days into the trip before I even saw my first red. Where there were fences, they went as far as the eye could see. What were once wild, open spaces no longer had that feeling; the landscape no longer looked inviting. The message was clear: red deer no longer had their place here.

Options on offer

In England I am aware of many managers being granted night licences to manage out-of-control deer numbers. The technology can not only give more accurate information on deer numbers through the use of thermals and drones, but also enables them to be shot at night with thermal and night vision scopes.

The call for rewilding and letting nature take over is getting louder as the years pass. Depending on the type of rewilding, this does not always work well with high deer numbers, so fences must be installed and deer excluded. The alternative is, of course, introducing apex predators such as lynx and wolves. 

Although lynx could theoretically work, as we can see in European countries, wolves would, in my opinion, be a step too far for this small country. You only have to look at the movement of wolves from eastern Europe across Germany to see the impact they have had on larger deer species. 

The Germans have an excellent record of growing a perfectly balanced deer herd, managed regionally by hunting committees. Stags are not taken until they are at their prime, and each year only a certain number are allowed to be shot in each hunting area. The rest of the herd is managed sensitively, with the right number of each age class of male and female taken to ensure the herd is strong. 

Unfortunately wolves do not play by the same rules. Stags can be much easier to catch during or after the rut, young deer are easily caught, and suddenly the dynamic is skewed. With no legal means of reducing wolf numbers, these historic herds are quickly becoming wiped out, and wolves will move on or turn to easier prey such as livestock.

Deer stalking has grown massively in the past 20 years, but so have deer numbers as they spread to all four corners of our island. We have not yet reached carrying capacity, as there are still areas of the UK not colonised by any deer. To fill these areas will take more time as deer navigate natural and man-made barriers.

“Don’t allow our local resources to go to waste. It’s time for creative thinking when it comes to deer management”

What is surprising is that although we have been eating venison for such a long time and the public widely regard it as an ethical and healthy food source, we still import so much and do not have a supply chain in place that makes the job of the stalkers easier. If ever there was a time to get this in order, it is now. For many stalkers my advice would be to get your venison to market in any way you can, and you will find the public very receptive to something that has been around for such a long time.