Tim Bonner: Can eating venison benefit the environment?

Early versions of the Government's 'Food Strategy' are reported to have recommended an "increase [to] the use of responsibly sourced wild venison" and a consultation launched this week suggested that the public sector should consider putting venison on the menu.

There are more deer in the UK than at any time since the Norman conquest and, in many places, densities are far too high and having a serious impact on fragile habitats. Debate on deer management tends to focus on red deer in the Highlands of Scotland where they provide the economic basis of the estate model. There is, however, little discussion of the impact of deer browsing on lowland woodland and other habitats. The fallow deer was introduced to the British countryside a thousand years ago and has never been more numerous whilst the indigenous roe has also seen rapid population growth with a potentially negative impact on the environment.

Over-grazing by deer can have knock-on effects for other species and the muntjac, a more recent arrival, is a particular issue. It was introduced to Woburn Park in Bedfordshire at the start of the 20th century and has spread across Southern England and the Midlands. Muntjac are notorious browsers, eating the shoots from shrubs, as well as woodland herbs and brambles. This clearing of woodland understory and undergrowth, combined with the browsing of larger species, has been linked to declines in a number of species including the nightingale, willow tit and woodcock. All these species also provide a threat to the establishment and regeneration of woodland on which the government has made ambitious commitments. Meanwhile, replacing intensively-farmed meat with local venison in your diet benefits both the environment by reducing carbon emissions and your health as venison is low in saturated fat and high in vitamins and minerals.

Promoting venison and encouraging an increase in the UK deer cull should, therefore, be a straightforward and wholly positive policy. Unfortunately, however, nothing is simple. The primary (although certainly not the only) driver for deer culling is the value of the deer carcass. The first challenge is that the deer that perhaps needs most focus in the lowlands, the muntjac, is tiny and the carcass value is therefore low. A game dealer might pay £10 – 15 for a muntjac carcass which is clearly not a huge economic driver. Meanwhile, the market for venison as a whole is weak for a number of reasons including the impact of increased red deer culls in Scotland driven by (often controversial) government policy and imports of farmed venison from New Zealand. Again, this means the motivation for reducing deer numbers is lower than it could be. Add to that the fragmented nature of land ownership in England where deer management is necessary, and the lack of local co-ordination on deer management and it is no surprise that despite the Government's suggestion that we should increase consumption of venison it is unlikely to impact on lowland deer populations.

Join the Countryside Alliance today and support our efforts to highlight the importance and value of game meat to rural communities.