Ag department to begin testing all donated venison for lead

Deer hunter
A Minnesota hunter shows off two deer taken by his party.
MPR file photo/Tom Robertson

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture announced today it's finding more toxic lead in venison donated to food shelves. Through random X-ray testing, the Ag Department found lead fragments in more than 5 percent of the whole-cut venison donated. That's more than double the amount found last year.

In response, the department will begin X-ray testing all meat collected through the Minnesota Hunter Harvested Venison Donation Program before it reaches food shelves.

Michael Schommer is Communications Director for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. He joined and talked about the process and what it means to venison consumers.

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