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Game dealers have lost a large part of their business in the last 10 months. Alan Hayward, who co-owns Vicars Game in Newbury, Berkshire, said he usually took in 200 deer carcasses a week but now he was only getting in between 40 and 50.
“There’s no demand, with all the restaurants closed,” he said. “I’m telling everybody to cut back and stop shooting.”Hayward, one of the country’s biggest game dealers, said the price had dropped by a third since March: “Farm shops are a little bit busier but it doesn’t compensate for the loss of catering, which is 70 to 75% of my business.”
Wild deer herds grow by up to 30% each year, with the population expanding by 600,000 between May and June. With deer stalkers not culling as many animals, concerns are growing that already large herds could eventually devastate woodland habitats for other species.
Gareth Fisher, an RSPB ecologist, said excessive deer populations had a detrimental impact on the habitats of many birds, including nightingales, warblers and willow tits. “If you’ve got lots and lots of deer then you tend to get more uniform habitats where there are fewer niches for the other species,” he said. “That’s the big issue.”
Fisher said that if deer were not controlled, species such as nightingale would lose out. “We are not looking to completely remove deer,” he said. “We very much appreciate that deer are an important part of the ecosystem, but the deer population needs to be sustainable. There are no natural predators that are going to keep the deer population in balance so humans have to take on that role.”
Martin Edwards, head of deer management at the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, which represents thousands of stalkers, said it was crucial to cull the female deer in the winter months.
Venison is increasingly regarded as a healthy, sustainable and readily available alternative to other types of red meat. “Deer are the most amazing sustainable food asset in Britain,” said Robinson. “You’ve got this large protein which has no cholesterol and is full of antioxidants… with none of the health issues that come with red meat.”
The British Deer Society, which promotes deer welfare, argues that culling should be carried out humanely and only where there are problems. “We recognise the need to keep deer numbers in check,” said Charles Smith-Jones, the society’s technical adviser. “But we are concerned about the means. It has to be done humanely. You don’t just go out and shoot any deer you see – there has to be a process.”
Bán qua Việt lam cho dân nhậu làm nai 7 món. Hay bán cho Tàu làm thuốc Bắc.
