The Uniqueness of Deer

Deer are magnificent animals that are treasured and respected by customers all over the world. Not a single part of the animal is wasted. 

Most of the meat goes to North America, Europe, and Asia, where it is sold to restaurants and supermarkets for a mixture of food service and retail applications. 

The majority of the offals and bones are further processed into pet food for the North American market. There is also a decent local market for pet food in NZ. Some offals are sold as edible grade for human consumption—organ meat has become more popular in recent times due to its nutritional benefits. 

Co-products such as tails, pizzles, and sinews are mostly sold to Asian markets, where they are further processed into traditional Chinese medicine, such as deer tail soup. Deer blood is also sold in Asian markets, where it is further processed into capsules and taken as a dietary supplement. Hides are sold to tanneries, where they are made into various leather-based products, such as the prolific German lederhosen outfit. 

Some by-products are not used for human or pet food, such as partially digested grass from the stomach or contaminated small pieces of meat or offal. These by-products are sold to further processors, who render them down to make fertilised products such as compost or blood and bone.